


Keepers of Peace: the Dawn of Courage

by Stargazer_In_Red



Series: Keepers of Peace [1]
Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Cheating, Forbidden Love, Gen, Loss of Parent(s), Mental Instability
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-08-21 04:26:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 24,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16569638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stargazer_In_Red/pseuds/Stargazer_In_Red
Summary: “They are coming, wave after wave, and the merciless shine of Sun will destroy what’s left after the severe leaf-bare.” Hard times await LeafClan, EagleClan, and WoodClan. Five young warriors were born in the last season of peace, and who knows what roles they will play in their Clan's fate?





	1. Prologue

Midday sun glowed mysteriously through branches of an old beautiful forest, through its leaves so fresh and big that the light turned pure green. A fluffy white cat skillfully moved past ancient trees making not a single rustle. Her nostrils trembled as she sniffed the warm air around. The white hunter smelled a teasing scent of prey coming from somewhere close. She was in such a peaceful harmony with both herself and the surrounding that she didn’t even notice the very weirdness of it. Why, pray, was she hunting in that blessed forest in the middle of greenleaf, while her usual territory was covered in bushes and suffered leaf-fall? Oblivious of those matters, she focused on the prey. A fat gray dove was digging and pecking something between large crooked roots of a giant oak that spread its branches highly and widely. The cat shifted trying not to wave her long tail. One mighty jump and her teeth clenched on the unlucky bird’s neck. Then the hunter bowed her head and quietly thanked StarClan for the food they granted her.  
“Whitecloud,” a soft voice came from behind.  
It made her hastily turn to meet the gaze of a small tabby who sat on fallen tree trunk nearby, her thin tail neatly curled around her forepaws.  
“Oh, hi, Darkpelt,” Whitecloud responded. “I’m dreaming, then.”  
The white warrior nodded at her own words while she glanced in surprise at the forest that didn’t look so friendly anymore. Cool breeze stirred her fur and made her shiver.  
“I wonder how I could mistake it for home,” Whitecloud continued. “Anyway, it’s nice to see you. Did you come just to chat or…” she left the end unspoken.  
The place went darker and colder, wind howled above and threw icy raindrops in their faces. Darkpelt shook her head sadly and gave her friend an apologetic look.  
“I came with bad news,” she said quietly.  
On trunks of trees the rain turned into ice, it started snowing, and everything but the cats vanished in cold white nothingness. Whitecloud whimpered curling on the ground and staring at Darkpelt, her eyes wide with awe and horror. The ones of the StarClan warrior now were glowing like two full moons, her smooth fur shined with pure starlight. She raised her chin and began speaking, and her voice sounded like a chorus.  
“They are coming.”  
The snowstorm settled down as if it never was, and Whitecloud beheld in fear what it made to the forest. Trees and bushes, roots and stones - everything was ice. Between bare branches dark grim sky was seen.  
“Wave after wave.”  
To these words the sky went brighter. Whitecloud felt warmth, the ice began to melt and crack. The forest disappeared one more time in highly rising mist, and the cat’s long fur turned wet.  
“And the merciless shine of Sun will destroy what’s left after the severe leaf-bare.”  
The sight cleared again and this time it made Whitecloud scream. The mist was mixed with smoke coming from burning, scorched trees, the sky blazed copper red. Slowly the forest turned into ashes.  
“Please!” Whitecloud cried. “What should I do? Can I help?”  
The tabby stood up and made a few steps away walking in the hot air a fox-length above cracking ground. Yet she froze at the white cat’s plea and their eyes met again.  
“No,” Darkpelt said after a moment of hesitation and sighed. She made a gorgeous jump and disappeared in a flicker leaving terrified Whitecloud in a land of sand and dust.

Gasping, Whitecloud woke up in her small tidy den. For a couple of heartbeats she laid there without a movement and only then dared to sit up when familiar sounds of a night camp calmed her down a little. Once fresh and neat, her moss nest was now in a mess, and small pieces of it were tangled with her fur. She started washing herself trying to avoid possible noise. Whitecloud did her best not to waken a small gray apprentice who slept in a nest next to hers. The sight of a young one, her sides slightly heaving, comforted the older cat’s restless mind. She finished working on her pelt, once more perfect and spotless, and tried to place herself among the torn moss.  
“It was just a dream,” Whitecloud whispered. “Just a dream.”  
But knowing too well the uselessness of such words, she couldn’t help shaking and shivering.  
For no dream sent us by StarClan is just a dream.


	2. Chapter 1

“Water, Ashpaw,” Whitecloud ordered, and the gray apprentice hurried out, a patch of fresh moss in her teeth. After the rain previous night the pool in the clearing was full, and she hastily made her way towards it. She pushed the moss into the very middle of it and waited till the air came out in bubbles. Then she trotted back to the nursery, more careful now as cold water was dripping down onto her paws. Both times she went past Sunfoot but paid no heed to him being proud of her duties. The orange tom gave her an unnerved look, fur on his spine rose despite the warm weather. There, in the nursery, his mate was giving birth.  
“Here,” Ashpaw meowed and passed the moss to Brightfur who was spread on her nest twitching and flinching. The tortoiseshell beauty whined and dug her teeth into the wet patch. Then she pushed it away and let out a moaning sob:  
“It hurts! Please, tell me that’s alright, tell me I’m OK!”  
“Of course you’re alright!” the white medicine cat answered calmly and gently. She leant over to lick Brightfur’s forehead. “You’re absolutely healthy.”  
“But it hurts!” Brightfur refused to quiet down.  
“It is supposed to,” Whitecloud explained patiently. “I’ve seen a lot of kitbirths, trust me.”  
“O-oh!”  
“Here we go, here we go,” Whitecloud purred. “Be a good mammy, push!”  
Mudstorm, another queen, a brown cat with white paws and white chest, sighed. From soft comfortable nest by the opposite wall she watched her friend’s suffering with sorrowful eyes, while her own two kits simply stared.  
“Poor Brightfur,” said Oakkit, a small tabby. Being a she-cat herself, she took it a bit personal. “So much pain already, and it’s only the beginning.”  
Her brother Icekit, black tom with his chest and paws white like his mother’s, scoffed and narrowed his blue eyes suspiciously. He liked to disagree, but this time it took him a while to put his thoughts into words.  
“She’s not that bad,” he said soon. “I think she just enjoys being looked after.”  
“Do you mean it doesn’t hurt?” Oakkit asked doubting the statement.  
“I didn’t say that,” Icekit shrugged. “But she yells too much. A warrior… ouch!” his mother suddenly slapped him with her tail.  
“Behave,” Mudstorm demanded firmly. “Have some respect. When I gave birth to you it was a lot of pain too.”  
“Yes, but I can’t imagine you squealing like this,” Icekit responded flatteringly. For a moment Mudstorm had no idea how to react.  
“Just… behave,” the answer came at last.  
“Oh, look,” Oakkit interrupted. “The first one!”  
Both kits leaned forward a little, their eyes were round with curiosity.  
“It’s so small,” Oakkit whispered. “Is it a he or a she?”  
Brightfur’s whimpering became milder, she panted, her sides were shaking.  
“Well done,” Whitecloud said softly. “The next is coming soon.”  
Brightfur sobbed again.  
“Take a deep breath,” the medicine cat went on. “Easy, easy.”  
Everything was over quite soon, for Brightfur indeed was healthy. There were three tiny wet furballs lying on the bracken and moss by their mother’s belly and everybody sighed with relief. Sunfoot finally showed in and asked nervously:  
“Are you alright?”  
“Yes, I’m fine,” his mate gave him a weak smile. “Come, meet your kits. These are Swiftkit, Spottedkit, and Shinekit.”  
Nobody noticed the way the last name made Whitecloud flinch. Sunfoot sat down in astonishment, as if he’d expected to find here something else but his own kits. His face expression changed from complete surprise and wonder to awe and adoration. Icekit found it so funny that he couldn’t help giggling and had to bite his own tail in order not to be heard. Oakkit crawled close to the kits and studied them in amazement, too exited to see or to hear anything else. Both queens watched the newborns purring happily. Ashpaw did her best to remain calm and solemn, yet the whole atmosphere affected her too.  
The shock lasted for brief heartbeats and soon the white medicine cat managed to hide her bewilderment and worry.  
“We’re leaving, Ashpaw,” she said. “It’s too crowded here. Don’t forget about the borage, Brightfur, you’ll need it for some more time.”  
But before taking her leave she bowed her head down to the kit that was born the last and whispered into her ear:  
“Welcome to LeafClan, Shine of Sun.”  
Shinekit whined as those words created an echo in her small head. Newborn, she already knew they meant something. Whitecloud licked her cheek and left at last. Soon Sunfoot followed her for he had been called out on patrol, otherwise he’d probably have stayed here forever. The nursery became a place of peace and harmony once more, perhaps due to the fact that the older kits were unusually quiet.  
“She-cats, all of them,” Oakkit muttered, still busy observing the newborns. Icekit was either less curious or too shy to demonstrate his feelings and stayed behind looking idle and prideful. But when a familiar dark figure appeared in the entrance and stepped inside both Icekit and Oakkit let out a happy yelp:  
“NIGHTFROST!”  
It was so loud that almost made the queens jump. The black blue-eyed tom laughed quietly.  
“Ah, my little warriors,” he purred.  
“Warriors!” Mudstorm snorted, a little angry and confused. “Warriors are quiet!” but she too couldn’t hide her smile. She was never able to be properly strict when her mate was around.  
“Congratulations, Brightfur,” Nightfrost turned to the tortoiseshell queen and nodded encouragingly.  
“Er, um, thanks,” Brightfur peered back sleepily.  
Icekit and Oakkit exchanged glances and the brother slowly moved behind their father aiming towards his long black tail. It was their game, trying to catch that tail, as soon as Nightfrost didn’t mind and always stayed watchful of his kits’ intentions. So it happened this time, Icekit wasn’t very skillful hunter yet and his plan was too obvious. As Nightfrost dodged his paws he hit the ground dangerously close to the younger kits.  
“Enough,” Mudstorm’s voice grew sharp for a moment. “It’s no longer a place for such tricks.”  
“Oh,” Nightfrost sounded embarrassed a bit. “I was about to go, I’m hunting with Littlestar today. Bye, then.”  
“Bye,” Brightfur answered and yawned widely.  
“Good luck,” Mudstorm added. “Kits, take a walk. You’re too big to play here already.”  
“Thanks, Mom,” Icekit grinned.  
“Go, go,” she smiled back.  
“C’mon, Oakkit,” the little tom nipped his sister’s shoulder. “Leave them, you’ll have a dozen of your own in your time!”  
“Who, me?” Oakkit frowned in a threatening manner. “Do you think I’m gonna spend half my life in the nursery?”  
“Well,” Icekit chuckled. “Judging by the way you look at them…” he broke the sentence and run out. With a yelp of indignation Oakkit rushed after him. Nightfrost gave his mate a merry look and left in turn. He caught up with his kits by the camp entrance where they welcomed back another group of hunters: gray tabby Rainstripe, black Molewhisker, and their apprentices. Icekit and Oakkit followed the latter to the fresh-kill pile while Nightfrost stopped by to chat with the mentors. The younger hunters were quarreling.  
“They won’t take you to the Gathering, obviously,” Blackpaw taunted. Green-eyed she-cat turned to the kits with a vile smirk. “Do you know what he did? Or, more correctly, what he didn’t? He caught nothing!”  
“Look,” Longpaw gritted his teeth. “I can explain…”  
“If only you could feed someone with your explanations!” Blackpaw scoffed.  
“You think you said something clever, huh?” the unlucky hunter hissed. “Mouse dung, I do know that!”  
“Brightfur gave birth,” Oakkit interrupted the row. “Three she-cats.”  
“I hate she-cats,” Longpaw growled and padded back to his mentor.  
“He has to bring here all the prey we’ve caught,” Blackpaw commented on. “Molewhisker’s idea.”  
“Ah, I got it!” Icekit laughed. “That’s why he hates she-cats!”  
“Yes, right,” Blackpaw grinned wider, but than her face expression turned to the one of utter surprise and shock. “No way!”  
The kits quickly turned and witnessed the following: “unlucky” Longpaw was leaving the camp in company of Littlestar, a slender cat whose name quite befitted her, and her black deputy.  
“Mouse dung, no way!” Blackpaw repeated.  
“Don’t swear,” a stern voice came from behind. “You’d better change my nest if you have nothing to do.”  
“Oh,” Blackpaw glanced miserably at Hawkface. The elder frowned a bit and the apprentice flinched. “Oh, OK. Do you need fresh moss or something?” she quickly responded.  
“Exactly,” Hawkface nodded. “But throw away the dirty one first, I’m sick and tired of it.”  
The kits watched Blackpaw unwillingly trotting to the elders’ den after Hawkface. Oakkit sighed with compassion but her brother suddenly giggled and she gave him an angry look.  
“Hey, what’ so funny about it?” she asked. “You know that she didn’t want to do that.”  
“She’s just showing off,” Icekit replied. “I’ve heard them talking, like: ‘Oh, my paws sore, I had to run forwards and backwards until Antfall liked the result! - Oh, me too, nor less than ten times, the elders have no conscience at all!’” he giggled again. “It’s like a game for them, who’s hurt more, believe me.”  
“But…” Oakkit began and stopped. She felt it deep down that there was some sense in what her brother had said, she simply disliked the way it sounded. She shook her head and put her doubts away. “Well, I see, I’d prefer to be an apprentice and clean the elders’ den but be able to go out, hunt, and fight.”  
“Right, “Icekit flashed an understanding smile. “Anyway, don’t bother. Let’s play a hunter and a mouse.”  
And so they did, and they have been doing that till the real hunters returned. Though Longpaw managed to catch a thrush this time he also was sent to the elders’ den. But he went off with a happy look, doubtlessly imagining how his sudden success would upset Blackpaw, and Oakkit didn’t like his face at all. The kits made a break to find something to eat and then played WoodClan invasion. Despite the fact that little defenders were outnumbered all the enemies suffered a shameful defeat.  
The day passed as usual.

Brightfur’s daughters were growing fast, and to their parents they looked more and more beautiful and complete. Two of them, Swiftkit and Spottedkit, were tortoiseshell like the mother but Shinekit turned out to be a golden tabby. But when the tiny she-cats opened their eyes it created even greater amazement in the nursery, for only Swiftkit and Shinekit had yellow eyes, and Spottedkit’s were pure green. No kin of theirs was green-eyed except for Sunfoot’s great-grandmother Thornstar. Such an interesting topic was a real gift from StarClan for the queens, who had absolutely nothing to do.  
“I remember Thornstar,” Mudstorm said. Being a few seasons older than her friend, she knew the previous leader of LeafClan quite well. “She was a little bit too mean but so good in battle. I hope your daughter will take it after her, my dear.”  
“I want them to be nice,” Brightfur replied, her voice unsure.  
The kits were already fed and wandered the nursery looking around in sheer surprise. Oakkit was still keen on them though she tried to hide it from her brother and now watched their first aware steps with an interest. She made a movement to lean over one of them and regarded her closely.  
“Look, Icekit, she’s got a…”  
With a hiss the kit stood up on her hinds and slapped the older she-cat furiously across the face.  
“For StarClan’s sake!” Oakkit yelped. She jumped back looking at the attacker in horror and disbelief as a little drip of blood appeared on her pink nose where a small claw had ripped subtle skin. Her cry made the queens glance at her hastily and nervously, but they didn’t seem to be worried by what they saw and immediately continued their conversation.  
“Not bad, that one!” Icekit merrily said. He stepped forward pushing away his sister and grinned widely. “Hello there, I’m Icekit, and that’s my sister Oakkit.”  
“Swiftkit,” the attacker muttered grimly.  
“For StarClan’s sake!” Oakkit repeated, a lot quieter than before. Now it was a low indignant snarl, full of anger and resentment. She blinked and licked her nose. It was actually the first time Swiftkit had ever seemed to be not some faceless kit but a living being with thoughts and feelings, a person. And she didn’t like that person very much. Swiftkit bared her teeth in a disgusting sort of a smile and giggled nastily at Oakkit’s face expression. Icekit watched it in amusement.  
“And we’re four moons old,” he added purposely. “Which makes us… lemme guess… four moons older than you.”  
Swiftkit frowned and growled loudly.  
“And that’s the time we leave,” Icekit went on. “It’s too stuffy in here. C’mon, Oakkit, let’s look for Nightfrost.”  
He solemnly made his way towards the entrance, Oakkit scoffed and padded next to him. Swiftkit looked past them in slowly growing surprise, her eyes widened.  
“Leave? Where to?” she asked, bewildered as she paid no heed to the entrance before. She saw the older kits walking out and suddenly got the meaning. “Wait for me! I’m coming too!”  
Swiftkit threw herself after them as quickly as she could, but her mother rose from her nest a lot quicker and grabbed the daughter by her scruff.  
“Get off, you!” Swiftkit struggled to gain her freedom back while Brightfur placed her on the moss and tucked her close. “Let go off me!”  
“No,” the queen responded firmly and licked the kit between her ears. “Outside it’s too dangerous for such a tiny thing like you.”  
“I’m not tiny!” Swiftkit yelled in her mother’s face. “I’m just smaller than you!”  
“Oh my…” Spottedkit winced and sat on her own tail. So young, she already hated different quarrels and blazing arguments, which seemed to happen constantly when Swiftkit was around. Shinekit stared at them all with a blank face.  
“Gr-r-r,” Swiftkit made Brightfur let her go at last and trotted to her sisters, half-washed and angry. “We have to get out of here!”  
“What?” Spottedkit’s voice rang, and Swiftkit hissed demanding silence.  
“There is something interesting out there, I feel it,” Swiftkit went on. “I want to see it!”  
“Wait, but…” Spottedkit muttered, still shocked. “But it’s dangerous.”  
“Don’t!” Swiftkit snorted. “Everybody does that!”  
“Yes, but they’re, like, bigger and, er, stronger,” Spottedkit protested.  
Swiftkit narrowed her eyes and leaned forward a little.  
“Stronger?” she echoed. “Do you think I couldn’t rip her fur off?”  
“I, I guess you could, but I don’t think you should…”  
“You tell me what I should do?” Swiftkit said slowly. “Oh, you’re the wisest here!” her voice turned sarcastic.  
Spottedkit took another look at her littermates, at Swiftkit’s eyes insane with rage, at Shinekit’s dull face, and fought a temptation to say “Yes, I am”.  
“What you offer isn’t very wise either,” she noted instead.  
“I think we have to do it,” Swiftkit ignored the last remark. “Haven’t we, Shinekit?”  
The third sister remained silent.  
“See?” Swiftkit gave Spottedkit a content smirk. “She’s in. Don’t be such a coward!”  
Spottedkit shook her head doubtfully for she wasn’t sure whether Shinekit’s lack of feedback could be understood like this.  
“Look,” she tried again. “I don’t think we should…”  
Swiftkit took a step towards her tortoiseshell sister and rose straightening her forepaws. She loomed above Spottedkit, who watched her horrified, and let out a low growl.  
“I’ve heard them talking about you,” she said. “They think you’ll take after a great warrior. You wouldn’t like to disappoint them, would you?”  
“Er… I thought Brightfur wanted…” Spottedkit squeaked.  
Swiftkit suddenly moved closer, almost pressing her face to Spottedkit’s muzzle.  
“Eh?” she asked quietly and scarily, making Spottedkit shiver nervously.  
“O-OK,” she answered shakily. “But do we have to take Shinekit with us?” she added in concern.  
“Why, what’s wrong with her?” Swiftkit seemed surprised.  
“Erm…” Spottedkit had no idea how to put in words right in front of their absent-minded sister. “She looks… fragile.”  
Swiftkit frowned and regarded the third kit closely. Shinekit stayed indifferent, even when her face was studied she just leaned back a little and stared at Swiftkit uninterested.  
“She’s fine,” Swiftkit concluded. Then she turned to Spottedkit and smiled joyfully. “We’re doing it tonight, when everybody is sleeping.”  
“Uhh… OK.”  
“Good!” Swiftkit laughed and rolled over her back. Sisters watched her in silence.

The moon was almost full and its milky light shined through the entrance. Swiftkit wakened and got up abruptly giggling softly and trembling with excitement.  
“Wake up!” she poked Spottedkit.  
But the sister only whined in her sleep and twitched a little.  
“Spottedkit! Time to go!” she made another attempt.  
Same result.  
“Shinekit!” she tried the other one.  
The golden kit didn’t even move.  
“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding!” her voice rose a bit. “Shinekit! Spottedkit!”  
Swiftkit sat down on the ground and glanced at her kin angrily. She was quiet for a while, afraid to disturb Brightfur’s sleep. Then she reached out and grabbed Spottedkit by her back forcing her to stand upright. But the kit was too heavy to carry, and Swiftkit ended up simply shaking her. Spottedkit let out a mumble of protest without opening her eyes. Swiftkit dropped her and she curled in the nest.  
“This is not fair,” Swiftkit muttered. “This is not fair!”  
She stared at them in desperation, realizing that she’s not going anywhere.  
“Shinekit, Spottedkit! Shia-a-a-ai…” she yawned.  
She lay down still thinking how to wake the sisters. Her last idea was whether she should summon Icekit to drag them out but then she thought that wakening him might be even harder. At that point she was off to sleep.  
“Shine of Sun…”  
Shinekit opened her eyes. It felt as if there was someone who wanted her to do something. Oh, Swiftkit and her bizarre ideas… But Swiftkit was asleep. No, it wasn’t Swiftkit. The urge that troubled her dreams was coming from far away. Shinekit stood up slowly and hesitantly and made first steps towards the entrance lit up by the bright white moon. Quietly she walked outside and raised her head to meet the stars’ cold gaze. Their light reflected in her wide pupils as she questioned them silently. Although her face was no more expressive than a piece of a wild rock her eyes shined quite befitting her name. She waited there for a while, then turned and vanished in the dark of the nursery.  
It is not very much fun to be the smartest in your litter.


	3. Chapter 2

Next morning Swiftkit was mad with fury.  
“You spoiled it all!” she shouted. “You sleepy cowards!”  
Spottedkit shifted uneasily. She avoided looking at Swiftkit and lowered her face studying her own forepaws with mixture of embarrassment and relief. Shinekit stayed behind her indifferent as always. Calmly she watched Swiftkit as if she wasn’t concerned.  
“I thought we had an agreement!” Swiftkit went on. “And what did I get? What did I get, huh?! You lazy furballs! You… you,” she paused, completely out of words.  
“Mouse-brains,” Icekit advised. He had been watching it for some time, entertained.  
“Mouse-brains! I relied on you! And what did you do?!”  
“And what did they do?” Icekit asked interestedly.  
Swiftkit gave him an angry glance having a hard choice to make. She was a bit fond of Icekit and wanted to share her crossness with him, but she began thinking her previous plans were rather funny, and the last thing she wanted was being mocked by the smart kit.  
“It’s nothing of your business,” she replied at last.  
“Hm?” Icekit flashed a witty smile. Since Swiftkit opened her eyes he found her somehow amusing. Her tiny angry face was the funniest thing he’d ever seen, and he couldn’t resist teasing her a bit more. “If it’s nothing, then why are you acting like a mad fox?”  
Swiftkit’s eyes flared as she turned to him fully, most obviously ready to claw and bite.  
“I’ve said that’s nothing of YOUR business!” she yelled. “Stop doing it, you dirty little…”  
“I think they are ready to go out,” Mudstorm interfered before Swiftkit could have come up with a proper ending, for the brown queen guessed where the reasons for the happening might be. “And, Icekit, if you are going to say ‘stop doing what?’ you’ll probably be torn to pieces.”  
“Right,” Swiftkit growled calming down a little.  
“But, Mudstorm, aren’t they too small?” Brightfur asked doubtfully. She shifted closer to her kits and wounded her tail around them protectively. Swiftkit winced and shied away.  
“Nonsense! You have to show them when it’s time to grow up,” Mudstorm responded. “But, of course, it’s up to you to decide,” she added quickly.  
“Well, then you can take a walk,” Brightfur gave her kits a worried glance. “Just don’t wander off.”  
“It’s high time,” Swiftkit muttered grumpily. She raised her short tail and padded towards the entrance, her paws still unsteady. She looked so small and frail that it made her mother sigh as they watched her off. Oakkit frowned, she fought conflicting thoughts and intentions.  
“We can show you around the camp,” she said at last addressing to Spottedkit and it sounded as if she was going to do something extremely hard. She didn’t come over the impression Swiftkit made on her and such an offer wasn’t an easy thing to say.  
“Oh, it would be great!” Spottedkit seemed relieved.  
Oakkit nodded and made her way out as well.  
“Icekit, let’s go,” she called. “I bet you’ll have fun.”  
“I think it is a lot safer like this,” Spottedkit said. “I mean, that we’re not alone. Don’t you… oh,” she realized she was talking to Shinekit and her fur rose with embarrassment. Shinekit looked away and shrugged. This simple gesture caused Spottedkit to stare at her in astonishment and slowly growing joy. At last it was a proper response, a sign of the golden kit’s attention.  
“She thinks!” Spottedkit purred to herself happily.  
“Hey, come on!” Icekit cried from the outside. All irrelevant thoughts vanished from Spottedkit’s head when for the first time she left the dark cozy nursery. She made a wrong step and nearly fell making Shinekit stop in the halfway.  
“It was greener and brighter when we were born,” Oakkit explained almost apologizing for the sight. “Leaf-bare is coming, you see.”  
But Spottedkit hadn’t even heard her and if she had she would have been very surprised, for she couldn’t imagine anything brighter than what she saw. LeafClan’s camp was situated among many thorny bushes which granted a protection close to perfect. Their branches formed a prickly wall around a small clearing in the shadow of a large beech, the only big tree near. Pale sun set a light upon red and yellow leaves that were still left and blinded stunned Spottedkit. She closed her eyes and then looked again trying to see everything at once.  
“This is the Watching Tree,” Oakkit pointed her tail towards the thing. “See the brown cat up there? That’s Mossfur, he’s standing guard.”  
“It’s so big,” Spottedkit breathed gazing at the beech. The brown warrior looked tiny and fragile against thick rough trunk, almost lost among dark boughs.  
“No enemy can come close unnoticed when somebody is there,” Oakkit went on. “And now let me show you the dens.”  
She walked forwards proudly, enjoying her new role as she led the younger kits across the clearing. But they hardly made a few steps when a loud yell reached their ears.  
“Enemy!” Spottedkit gasped. She raised her eyes in horror but Mossfur above bent down looking puzzled as well.  
“No, it’s in the warriors’ den,” Icekit responded. “Let’s take a…” he began, his voice rather curious than worried.  
A low growl broke his suggestion. Some small bright furball darted from under a big bramble bush and stopped only three tail-lengths from the frozen group of kits. It was Swiftkit. All her fur was up when she turned back to the den entrance and hissed at coming out Molewhisker. The black cat was literally trembling with anger.  
“Why,” now she was drawling quietly. “Why can’t a warrior take a nap without a kit falling on her head?”  
“I didn’t fall!” Swiftkit snarled. “I was investigating!”  
“In-vesti-gating?” Molewhisker echoed. She slipped out of the warriors’ den fully, her teeth bared, her tail hitting her sides. “Investigating?” she repeated and her voice rose again. “This is not a place for kits investigating, go back to your toys, games, and milk, and who, in StarClan’s name, let you out of the nursery?!”  
“I go where I want, don’t refer to me like this!” Swiftkit screamed in turn. She didn’t seem scared, not even a little bit, just angry and indignant. “I’ll grow up soon, stronger than you, and you’ll regret it!”  
For a heartbeat or two Molewhisker stared at the kit with round eyes and dropped jaw. Swiftkit returned the glance with burning fury, and the black cat suddenly burst in laughter. It was not a nice sound, full of good humor, but a sharp wicked outbreak. She tossed her head and closed her eyes as she roared with laughter, her whole frame was shaking. The kits watched it in shock. Swiftkit occasionally stepped back and found herself attempting to hide behind Icekit, Spottedkit leant into Oakkit. Meanwhile Molewhisker calmed down. She looked at them sternly and severely.  
“Get away from my sight,” she barked.  
“Sorry, Molewhisker, we’re leaving, Molewhisker,” Oakkit squeaked. She reached out to pick overwhelmed Swiftkit up and quickly harried away, the others followed her.  
“StarClan, she’s heavy,” Oakkit thought unconsciously while she carried Swiftkit. The younger kit didn’t disturb for some time, taken by surprise, but then meowed in protest.  
“Hey, you, put me down!” she hissed, her hinds uselessly scratching the ground as Oakkit continued dragging her somewhere. She began struggling but without any success, until by the other side of the clearing Oakkit unclenched her jaws and dropped the tortoiseshell one.  
“I can walk myself!” Swiftkit yelped when she was let go. “What for did you do that?”  
“You really should have thanked me,” the tabby said angrily, gazing down at Swiftkit. “I saved you from the biggest trouble of your life, see.”  
“Just try something like this again and I will “thank” you,” the smaller kit snarled.  
They placed themselves near another den which was said to belong to the apprentices. It was empty at the moment thus bringing Spottedkit some relief, for she knew they wouldn’t disturb anyone again. Shinekit sat down as if nothing happened and began trying to wash herself. Icekit found her attempt rather skillful for a cat of her age. Everybody but Swiftkit was slowly calming down.  
“She mocked me! She thought I was funny!” Swiftkit gritted her teeth.  
“I doubt she meant something funny,” Icekit said. Oakkit nodded but Swiftkit and Spottedkit gave him puzzled looks.  
“What did she mean, then?” Swiftkit grumbled.  
“I don’t know, ask her herself when you grow up,” Icekit shrugged. “If you’ll dare.”  
“Um… sorry, but…” Spottedkit began. She was still shivering slightly. “Who was that?”  
Oakkit sighed.  
“Molewhisker,” she said grimly.  
“And may StarClan help you if you’ll end up her apprentices,” Icekit added.  
“Right,” his sister agreed. “I wonder how Blackpaw manages… oh, here she goes!”  
Spottedkit jumped and turned around hurriedly, but fortunately it wasn’t Molewhisker. This time it was just some another black cat, much smaller and nicer.  
“Hello everybody,” she said looking at them over a large ball of moss she was carrying in her mouth.  
“Hi, Blackpaw,” Oakkit responded, glad to see her older friend. When her eyes traveled down from the black cat’s face, she saw that her paws were wet. “What happened?” she asked, surprised.  
“Don’t even ask,” Blackpaw winced.  
“Is it just me, or everything you do lately is changing nests?” Icekit said.  
The apprentice let out a sad chuckle, a bit muffled by the moss.  
“I have to show my best, especially today,” she explained.  
“Why, what’s so special about today?” Swiftkit asked.  
Blackpaw stared at her in shock.  
“The Gathering, of course, silly!” she meowed in the moss.  
Swiftkit hissed and Oakkit hastily stepped forward, though she couldn’t say who she was trying to protect and who from.  
“Don’t call her like that,” she said nevertheless. “She won’t go there, so she doesn’t have to remember.”  
“What are you talking about?” Spottedkit asked curiously. “What is the Gathering?”  
“What, you don’t even know?” Blackpaw gasped in surprise. “Poor thing, what are the others thinking about?”  
“The Gathering is when all three Clans…” Oakkit began, for she felt guilty as if the kits’ lack of knowledge was her fault. But she didn’t get the chance to finish, her explanation being rebuked by a loud shout.  
“Blackpaw! Are you chilling there?” the cry came from a lean dark she-cat who was sitting not far from them with her tail hitting the ground angrily.  
“Oh no!” the apprentice whined. She rushed towards the cat speeding up even more than before and eventually dropped a tiny patch of moss. Swiftkit made a movement to follow the apprentice, but Oakkit stepped in her way.  
“Let’s not disturb her, OK?” she said. “She really wants to go to the Gathering, it will be her first.”  
“What is the Gathering?” Spottedkit repeated patiently before her sister had a chance to say something rude. She was determined to get the answer.  
“Well…” Oakkit started. She sat down and hesitated for a moment to reconsider the amount of younger kits’ knowledge beforehand and had chosen a different beginning. “There are three Clans, you know. We are LeafClan, this is our camp and our territory. There are WoodClan in the woods, it’s always dark where they live, and they are envious of the others, who can see the Sun. And there,” she pointed towards something gray and wide that loomed not far away from the camp, “there EagleClan live. Their place is called mountains. They sleep on rock, but they do not complain. We all gather together each full moon, and it is called the Gathering.”  
“Oh,” Spottedkit looked at her with her eyes round. “And when you said ‘enemy’, did you mean them?”  
“Well, WoodClan mostly,” Oakkit shrugged. “EagleClan are weird but nice.”  
“I’m bored,” Swiftkit poked the piece of moss. “Do you have something else to show, or that’s all?”  
“Medicine cat’s den,” Icekit suggested.  
“If you think it’s a good idea…” Oakkit frowned, but Spottedkit looked at her pleadingly and Icekit nodded encouragingly, so the tabby banished her worries quickly, got up, and beckoned the younger kits.  
As they walked somewhere again, strange feelings overcame Spottedkit. Everything was so unusually bright, light breeze touched her fur, and the ground was curvy and rough. She hardly managed to keep up with the others. But Oakkit eventually slowed down when they almost reached another big bush that smelled in a strange way. For the fist time Spottedkit had noticed that those bushes which were used as dens had many stray, odd branches tangled with the actual ones. It must have been a work of generations, and the medicine cat’s den was a clear example. Standing where she was, Spottedkit couldn’t see a thing through thick boughs. The den had an entrance, of course, but the kits stopped by its side, and Oakkit was sniffing the air nervously. Suddenly something light moved inside, and Oakkit backed off.  
“Hey, don’t worry,” her brother responded. “I saw her leaving the camp.”  
Oakkit relaxed a bit and called:  
“Ashpaw, is that you?”  
“Yes,” the answer was. “Come in.”  
And so they did. The apprentice’s eyes widened as she saw such a crowd of cats.  
“What are you doing here, everybody at the same time?” she asked rather friendly though.  
“Investigating,” Swiftkit responded boldly, thus making Oakkit to wince, Icekit to smile, and Spottedkit to feel embarrassed.  
The apprentice chuckled and returned to her herbs.  
“Investigate, then,” she said.  
“And what are you doing?” Spottedkit made a small step forward. “What are those things?”  
“These?” Ashpaw pointed at dry brown leaves she was studying, and Spottedkit nodded. “It’s borage for your mother. You still drink her milk, don’t you? Well, and it will help her to give you more.”  
“Oh,” Spottedkit looked at Ashpaw with respectful eyes. She already liked the medicine cat’s den, for it was so big, tidy, and secure. It didn’t seem dark like the nursery, there was a small opening above, through which the sky could always be seen. By its walls various leaves, roots, and seeds were neatly arranged on wide pieces of bark. Two nests were situated near the entrance, and there was enough space and fresh moss for more. The tortoiseshell kit almost felt like staying here forever.  
“What is that?” Swiftkit asked and poked some small dark gray balls. To her greatest surprise they did not stay still but rolled in her direction, loosing tiny black crumbs on their way. Ashpaw raised her eyes and froze.  
“It looks like earth,” Swiftkit said.  
“Mouse dung!” Ashpaw shrieked.  
“Mouse what?” Swiftkit pricked up her ears.  
Everybody glared at her, and only Icekit giggled.  
“Step away from poppy seeds- step away from everything, now!” Ashpaw’s eyes flared.  
“Oh, come on!” Swiftkit didn’t sound even slightly guilty. “Don’t act like a mad fox!”  
Ashpaw lost her speech, Oakkit and Spottedkit exchanged glances and stared angrily at Icekit, who struggled to keep his face serious. Clearly, Oakkit had been right about him having fun.  
Meanwhile Ashpaw observed the damage and calmed down a bit. Seeds had fallen on dry ground and once picked up were easy to store separately. She rose from her place, pushed Swiftkit aside giving her a cold look, and made an attempt to gather the seeds with a stiff oak leaf. Suddenly the den turned darker.  
“What happened here?” a soft voice came from behind. Spottedkit choked: a sigh of relief seemed to get stuck in her throat. Whitecloud had returned. She emerged into the den fully and loomed above the “investigators” as she regarded them closely, yet avoiding Shinekit’s blank face. After a moment that seemed to last forever, her bright green eyes had found Swiftkit’s yellow ones. The kit scoffed.  
“Oh, come on!” she began again, and this time even Icekit gasped. Still after that Swiftkit averted her eyes. “It’s only been a couple of seeds, why are you all making such a fuss?” with those words she scoffed again.  
Whitecloud scowled at the remark, but then her face turned peaceful once more. She nodded and smiled.  
“I see,” she said. “You’re just tired. Go to the nursery and have some sleep.”  
“Why, I’m not tired,” Swiftkit’s voice was full of surprise.  
“Look at me,” Whitecloud asked, and Swiftkit did so, with much question though.  
“You are tired, you feel it now,” the medicine cat said. “You want to sleep.”  
“I don’t!” Swiftkit protested.  
“Your eyes fall shut, your paws cannot hold you up,” Whitecloud went on completely ignoring her. Her voice, which always was not the highest, grew even lower and deeper as she spoke. “You are very, very tired.”  
Spottedkit shook her head. For some reason she found it difficult to keep her eyes open. She looked at the others to find out whether they were feeling the same, and saw Ashpaw hung her head over the poppy, Icekit and Oakkit staring down dozily, and Shinekit blinking at a quick pace.  
“You are so very tired that you are going to the nursery right now,” Whitecloud kept on whispering. “And you will sleep for the rest of the day.”  
Swiftkit, who looked at the medicine cat breathless and wide-eyed for an instance, suddenly burst.  
“I am not tired!” she yelled. “I will not sleep!”  
The spookiness of the moment was ruined. Everybody exhaled slowly, the Sun sent its rays through the opening above.  
“I will not sleep!” Swiftkit repeated. “Do you-a-a-w…” she yawned out of the blue. For a few heartbeats she stayed still, her mouth opened, and stared at Whitecloud frantically.  
“What have you done to me?” she squeaked and sat down heavily.  
“You’d better help her to get to the nursery,” Whitecloud suggested in her normal tone as she turned to other kits, which were in a state of shock. Shinekit alone frowned at the medicine cat wistfully.  
“Yeah, yeah, right,” Oakkit came back to her senses. She helped Spottedkit to walk tottering and yawning Swiftkit through the entrance, two other kits followed them. They had heard Whitecloud talking to Ashpaw as they hurried out:  
“If you want to pick up those, first lick your paw…”  
The kits retreated as quickly as they could.  
After a dozen of pawprints their ways parted, as the older kits slowed down, and Spottedkit and Shinekit continued on their route towards the nursery, pushing and holding their faint sister from both sides.  
“Mouse dung, she did something to me!” the latter whined.  
Oakkit shot an angry glance at Icekit, and he smiled:  
“That’s Ashpaw, not me.”  
“But you were the one who let the whole thing happen!” Oakkit was still highly displeased. “Who said: ‘Let’s go to the medicine cat’s den'?”  
“Me. So what?” Icekit nuzzled her shoulder. “Don’t you worry, let’s play.”  
“And what if Whitecloud tells Littlestar about it?” Oakkit couldn’t relax as fast as her brother. “We’re almost five moons old, what if they delay our apprenticeship”  
“Don’t you worry,” Icekit repeated and laughed quietly. “She has a proper sense of humor. And now let’s play.”  
“All right, and what do you want me to play?” Oakkit asked, grumpily still. “Not a hunter and a mouse, please, I’m sick and tired of it.”  
“This,” Icekit said and picked up a patch of moss Blackpaw had previously dropped. “I’ll hide it, you’ll look for it.”  
At that point Oakkit suddenly found herself willing to play, at least to wipe out the uneasiness Whitecloud’s performance had left. She felt as if expecting something bad to happen, as if an unknown enemy was watching her and planning an attack. A leaf-fall sun gave pale light, making everything look ghostly and unreal. Oakkit shivered uncomfortably and frowned at her careless brother.  
“I’ll find it sooner than you say ‘mouse’,” she spoke loudly, feeling slightly lightheaded. She thought that maybe Whitecloud’s words had affected her somehow, and it would go away soon.  
“We’ll see,” Icekit smirked slyly. “Now close your eyes, bow your head to the ground, and don’t look!”  
“As if I needed looking!” she muttered in the sand a few moments later when she heard Icekit’s departing patter. She felt dizzy again. Suddenly she heard approaching pawsteps. Someone chuckled behind.  
“What are you doing, looking for worms?” a tom’s voice asked.  
“No,” she responded slightly angry, probably due to the stupidity of her position. “I’m playing a game with my brother, he’s hiding a piece of moss somewhere, and I will find it.”  
“Ah,” the tom replied, and Oakkit had felt him moving closer. “Then you should try looking behind the leader’s den,” he suggested quietly, his mouth by her ear.  
“Hey, that’s not fair!” she exclaimed and twitched.  
“Just think, how impressed he will be!” the tom tried to persuade her. “He’ll stop teasing you all the time. C’mon, do you think real warriors play fair?”  
“Real warriors don’t play,” Oakkit remembered one of Mudstorm’s sayings.  
“Oh, really?” his voice was mocking now. “What’s the point in being a warrior, then?”  
“I think…” she began after considering his words for a while, but was met with a sudden breeze brushing her fur from the side where he must have been. “Hey, where are you?”  
“Oakkit!” this time it was Icekit. “Are you sleeping, lazy furball?”  
“What? No!” she responded opening her eyes and getting up quickly. “It’s just… there was uhh…” she realized that she could neither guess who she’d been talking to nor tell Icekit the matter of the conversation.  
“Nobody was there, and you were snoring!” Icekit giggled and squinted. “You sleepy thing, Whitecloud’s got on you!”  
“You are both blind and deaf!” Oakkit scoffed. “Don’t be too surprised if find your moss right now!” telling him this, she turned away and headed towards the leader’s den.


	4. Chapter 3

Oakkit came near to Littlestar’s den carefully, for she had to pass by Whitecloud’s and didn’t want to be seen there again. She moved very cautiously, but realized the vainness of her efforts when she heard the voices muffled by the walls of the leader’s den. She felt as if her heartbeat stopped for a moment and then returned, faster and louder. Whitecloud was in there talking to Littlestar! “This is nothing of my business, it can’t be what I think it is, I’ll just take the moss and go”, Oakkit told herself as she tried to fight off sudden weakness. She sneaked behind the den quieter than a mouse praying to StarClan that the she-cats wouldn’t hear or smell her and looked around. At the first sight the moss wasn’t there. Slightly disappointed, the kit took a few steps to leave intending to come back here later for a more detailed search, when a certain name caught her attention.  
“… and Icekit,” Whitecloud had finished some sentence.  
Oakkit froze with one paw raised. “Mouse dung, I was right” she thought in panic. “She is telling about what we did!” And there she stood breathless, listening to the conversation of two grown-ups.  
“Hm,” Littlestar responded to whatever Whitecloud had said. “I agree on Shinekit. Shine of Sun, it couldn’t have been more obvious. But why Icekit?”  
“He was born before her,” the answer came. “And he has something of leaf-bare in his name.”  
“So does Snowpaw and a couple of cats in other Clans. Did Darkpelt state that both of them must be born in LeafClan?”  
“Who is Darkpelt?” Oakkit thought, puzzled. Her fear was replaced with curiosity as soon as she realized that no one was going to be punished. She felt a bit guilty because of overhearing all this, but suppressed those thoughts. “I’m not a spy, after all, I’m a LeafClan cat”.  
“No, she did not. I’m just… worried,” for the first time in her life Oakkit sensed effort in Whitecloud’s voice, usually calm and smooth. “This kit reminds me of him.”  
“Of whom?” Littlestar asked.  
“Him” Whitecloud repeated meaningfully.  
“Oh, the him,” Littlestar replied quickly. “It doesn’t mean anything, a lot of cats look like their relatives, even distant ones. You must have seen Spottedkit’s green eyes.”  
“The way he laughs…” the medicine cat began and stopped.  
“Whitecloud, he’s just a kit,” Littlestar said sharply. “But if you worry so much about this prophesy” she added softer, “his mentor will be the best warrior in the Clan, someone who can take care of him.”  
“OK,” Whitecloud agreed. “And I’ll look after Shinekit. She seems to need some help as well.”  
“It would be great,” Littlestar fell silent for a moment as if trying to choose the words most carefully. “Have you talked to Mudstorm about it? I know you have some special rules, but…”  
“No, I haven’t,” Whitecloud answered. “It’s been seasons of peace for her, I won’t disturb her with mere suspicions.”  
“Good, good,” the leader sounded relaxed. She sighed. “Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me, I’ll keep that in mind. Anyway, as we’re going to the gathering tonight, whom should I take?”  
Whitecloud paused before an answer, Oakkit began backing away slowly and hadn’t heard her response. She walked away lightly and quietly, her heart in her mouth. As soon as she made sure that nobody had noticed her, she rushed back to Icekit, who was still waiting in the clearing and watching Blackpaw brought a big brunch in the camp.  
“Icekit!” she started yelling on her way, longing to share the news. “Icekit! You won’t believe me!”  
“Where is the moss?” he asked, his ears turning to her.  
“Forget about the moss!” Oakkit tossed her tail impatiently. “You are a part of a prophesy!”  
“What?!”  
“Yes! Yes!” she nodded like mad as she jumped around him in joy. “There is a prophesy about you and Shinekit!”  
“What?” Icekit squeaked. “Me… and who?”  
“Shinekit! And that’s because of your names!” Oakkit stopped jumping and regarded the outcome of her talk. Seeing Icekit stunned and speechless for the first time in her whole life filled her heart with warmth and satisfaction. “I’ve heard Littlestar and Whitecloud talking about it,” she added calmer. “Whitecloud had learnt the prophesy from a StarClan warrior,” she finally guessed who that mysterious Darkpelt might be.  
“Well, well,” Icekit drawled. Much to Oakkit’s disappointment the first shock didn’t last long, and he was regaining his haughty and sneering manners. “I always knew there’s something special about me. Did they mention you?”  
Oakkit frowned and shook her head.  
“Just what I thought,” he smirked. “And am I supposed to do?” he asked, his eyes lit up with excitement.  
“No idea,” now Oakkit regretted that she hadn’t come there earlier so she could have heard the whole prophesy. “It’s only just that you remind them of someone.”  
“Oh, it must be Nightfrost,” Icekit said proudly.  
“In fact, no,” Oakkit responded and frowned at her brother’s remark. She wished she also looked more alike her father, she admired his thick black fur and bright blue eyes no less than Icekit did. “I’m absolutely sure that it was someone else,” she added highlighting each word.  
“Oh, don’t!” Icekit smirked. “Everyone says I’m a spitting image of my father.”  
“Who?” Oakkit asked grumpily. “Who says?” she repeated more eagerly as she saw Icekit slightly losing his confidence.  
“Well… uhh… Dewblaze,” he said at last.  
“Dewblaze!” Oakkit laughed evilly at her brother’s embarrassment. “You can as well say ‘Shinekit’! Everybody knows that all the wits in that litter has gone to Rainstripe,” yet saying all this aloud she looked around cautiously, fearing Molewhisker. She went on giggling triumphantly as Icekit scowled at her, but unexpectedly Whitecloud’s words echoed in her head:  
“The way he laughs…”  
Now she sounded just like Icekit. Her laughter broke off.  
“You know,” Oakkit said growing serious, “I doubt she meant something good. She sounded a great deal worried.”  
Icekit suddenly glanced past her and poked her side.  
“Look,” he said, and she turned around, full of bad feelings. Her heart sunk: there was Mudstorm walking towards them, a highly displeased look on her face.  
“Kits,” she began sternly, “I’ve heard you misbehaved in the medicine cat’s den.”  
They replied simultaneously:  
“No!”  
“It was Oakkit!”  
Their mother rolled her eyes.  
“You should have known that it was not a place for small kits,” she said. “You two are almost five moons old, and you’re no more mature than Swiftkit.”  
“But we didn’t hurt anyone!” Oakkit protested leering at Icekit grimly.  
“Does it matter?” Mudstorm asked. “You should be the best, so your Clan could be proud of you,” she went on not bothering to hear an answer. “I have a task for you,” she added and regarded her kits attentively. “See those branches Blackpaw and Honeypaw are carrying? They are for the dens, and you are going to help Molewhisker and Squirreltail with the repairing.”  
“What?” Icekit gasped. “But this is the apprentices’ job!”  
“I don’t recognize my kits,” Mudstorm scoffed. “Are you the ones who wanted to grow up as soon as possible? Get up and start working.”  
And so they did, confused and angry. Under the mother’s encouraging gaze the kits padded towards Squirreltail and offered their help to his greatest surprise. They began with the elders’ den, and the work was followed by constant bickering of Hawkface and Molewhisker, who seemed to have very different tastes and ideas. Listening to them would be fun, but the poor kits had to bring the branches left by apprentices to the very den, and thus they were always on foot. Each time some big bough got stuck, or one of the siblings dropped a smaller twig, they earned an angry hiss from the black warrior and an apologetic look from the orange one. “That’s all you,” Oakkit growled through clenched teeth “Let them see the medicine cat’s den, let them see the medicine cat’s den… A good prophesy hero you are!” Icekit remained silent.  
When the unwanted business was finally over, they found it to be late evening. As they shared a mouse, Oakkit felt a glimpse of surprise through the overwhelming tiredness - usually the days appeared to be longer. They had heard Littlestar calling:  
“Let all those cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Watching Tree for a Clan meeting.”  
“Wow, that’s late,” Icekit yawned.  
“Out of my way!” passing-by Longpaw snapped. “Meetings’re not for kits!”  
“How could he know I’m not old enough to catch my own prey?” Icekit wondered with last bits of his vigor. “It’s not like anybody ever checked.”  
“Move your paws, hunter,” Oakkit grumbled.  
When they got to the nursery, Swiftkit was still asleep. Shinekit was dozing beside her, shifting lazily from time to time and half-opening her eyes. Their mother also was sleeping, and Mudstorm had gone to the meeting, so it was unexpectedly quiet and still. Spottedkit silently nodded in acknowledgement and moved away slightly, giving Icekit the way. Oakkit smirked as he walked to their nest and simply dropped there, for some reason she felt less worn out now.  
“What’s going on?” Spottedkit looked outside.  
“The Clan meeting,” Oakkit responded. “Come on, we can watch it from here.”  
They placed themselves in the entrance and prepared to listen. It was not the first time for Oakkit to witness the Clan’s life like this, but for Spottedkit it was very new so far. She watched all of LeafClan gathering there, right in front of the tree, in low branches of which Littlestar sat.  
“Are we the biggest Clan?” Spottedkit whispered, her eyes round. “Or are the others even bigger?”  
“I have no idea,” Oakkit answered honestly. “We’re medium sized, I guess.”  
Meanwhile Littlestar observed her warriors and smiled.  
“Tonight is the night of the Gathering,” she began, and her voice was heard clearly. “Let us repeat what we’ve got.”  
“We chased off a fox!” brown Windstep shouted from his place.  
“Brightfur gave birth,” Sunfoot added.  
“And I will announce it in front of the others,” Littlestar agreed. “We also won’t have to lie about our well-being, since nothing bad happened.”  
There was a murmur in the crowd, many cats nodded.  
“Today we’ve prepared the elder’s den for the leaf-bare, and I’d like to state that Oakkit and Icekit helped our warriors and apprentices with this important task,” Littlestar said, and some cats turned to look at Oakkit with surprise and approval in their eyes. The small tabby shifted, feeling a loud purr rising deep in her throat.  
“And now about whom I’m taking with me,” the leader went on, and the cats all looked at her with interest. “Nightfrost and Whitecloud, of course, then Sunfoot, Rainstripe, Windstep, Nettleclaw, and Molewhisker.”  
“She didn’t name any of the apprentices,” Oakkit quietly noticed.  
“What for the apprentices,” Littlestar continued, and the latter sighed with relief and gazed at her even more attentively, “Whitecloud decided to take Ashpaw. I think that Blackpaw and Longpaw deserved to be there as well.”  
“Yes!” the black apprentice meowed aloud, breaking the seriousness of the moment. “I knew it, I knew it!”  
The others gave her warm and cheering looks, even Snowpaw and Honeypaw, who seemed to miss this Gathering, purred.  
“You worked well,” Littlestar said and nodded encouragingly. “Today Longpaw has caught two mice, two thrushes, and a sparrow,” she went on, addressing to the whole Clan again. “And this is more than any apprentice had brought to the fresh-kill pile in leaf-fall since Rainstripe and Mudstorm became warriors. What for Blackpaw, she did a good job at the camp today: she fetched extra brunches for the elders’ den and helped Bluewing to get rid of her fleas.”  
“Thank you very much!” the old gray cat responded grumpily. “Maybe you will tell the whole Gathering about my fleas?”  
“Oh, it’s so kind of you!” Littlestar’s whiskers twitched humorously. “I bet everyone will be delighted to hear something new about them, especially One-ear.”  
Bluewing scoffed, but deep in her eyes merry sparkles lit up.  
“They are always like this,” Oakkit explained. “Bluewing is her aunt.”  
“I see,” Spottedkit replied and then asked: “And who is One-ear?”  
“An EagleClan elder, I suppose,” Oakkit answered, her voice unsure. “At least that’s what I recall.”  
The tabby started feeling sleepy again as they watched the last arrangements be made and the last orders be given. The camp grew quieter when the warriors left for the Gathering, all three elders were following them as usual, Littlestar didn’t even have to name them. The sun was setting, and the Starpelt glowed brighter and brighter with each moment. Full moon was rising behind the Watching Tree, intricate shadows wandering the clearing. Spottedkit stared into the darkening night unblinkingly, it was the first time she saw something that eerie and mysterious. Mudstorm shoved in and nudged the kits a bit.  
“Get in,” she said softly. “It’s cold.”  
Spottedkit padded towards her nest and curled by her mother’s side with a long yawn. Oakkit rose from her place more slowly, for she had almost fallen asleep right there. She moved aside, letting Mudstorm in, and followed her to their own nest, where they discovered that Icekit had taken the whole space.  
“Move off,” Mudstorm poked him.  
“Nhhh,” he responded in his sleep. “Got her’ first.”  
“No, I got here seasons before you were born,” the queen replied. “Move, or Oakkit and I will sleep on you.”  
He shifted, giving necessary room, and the tabbies crawled onto the moss and fell asleep.

Oakkit woke up because of the loud voices. She immediately knew what was going on: Littlestar and the others had returned from the Gathering. She jolted upright, but her mother’s paw had pressed her down.  
“Tomorrow,” Mudstorm said sleepily.  
“But something interesting happened!” Oakkit protested, struggling to shake the bigger cat off. She could hear the delighted squeaks Blackpaw was making while waking other apprentices.  
“She’ll tell you everything tomorrow, and then you will ask Nightfrost, and he’ll tell you what exactly had happened,” Mudstorm sounded more conscious now. “I’m not going anywhere either.”  
“But…”  
“Sleep,” Mudstorm licked her daughter’s forehead.  
Oakkit relaxed, feeling like going to sleep again.  
“Are you putting me to sleep like Whitecloud did?” she asked, her eyes now closed.  
“No, my voice is too high,” Mudstorm answered. “But Icekit will be able to…”  
Oakkit couldn’t hear her already. She dreamt and visited weird places. She saw burnt grass and a small orange she-cat, who was crying and cursing aloud.


	5. Chapter 4

In the morning Oakkit woke up to the sound of Swiftkit yelling at her sisters about sleep. It felt somehow familiar.  
“I told you to nip me!” Swiftkit shouted.  
“But I did! - Spottedkit was shouting back, it was something new. “I bit your tail so hard that there was blood!”  
“What?!”  
Oakkit sighed, half asleep still. It was so irritating, always having that nuisance around. Without opening her eyes she moved a little and tucked her head under her mother’s belly. But Mudstorm moved away.  
“Don't you want to hear the news from the Gathering?” she asked.  
“The Gathering!” in a heartbeat Oakkit woke up fully. She jumped up and hurried out, eventually pushing Swiftkit aside. The smaller kit let out a yelp of surprise, but Oakkit had already been gone and couldn't apologize even if she wanted so.  
“Blackpaw! Blackpaw!” she yelled, afraid that her friend had already been sent away. To her greatest relief a familiar black head shoved out of the apprentices' den. Blackpaw squinted at the sunlight and yawned. After a whole night awake she was tired and dizzy, and her fur was in a mess, yet she shook off her sleep as soon as she saw Oakkit's anticipation. Her eyes lit up, and she began speaking in a high, deliberately excited tone:  
“You won't believe me!”  
“What? What happened there? Have you seen the other Clans?”  
“Yes,” Blackpaw held a dramatic pause, and Oakkit unconsciously dug her claws in the ground. “And you know what? Old Rockstar of EagleClan died!”  
“Oh,” Oakkit responded, unsure whether she should be sad or not.  
“Don't you get it?” Blackpaw tossed her head impatiently. “Come on! What was the name of his deputy?”  
“Er… Starflower?” Oakkit said, and then her voice rose as she suddenly realized it. “Starstar!”  
“Yes, exactly!” Blackpaw giggled. “And he is so pretty! Dapplepaw said: ‘No, I saw him first', but I said: ‘No way, his mom saw him first, and she wouldn't mind if a nice…’  
“Wait!” Oakkit felt that her understanding was beginning to fade away. “Who's Dapplepaw?”  
“An apprentice from WoodClan, big and ugly like a badger,” Blackpaw answered quickly and carelessly. “Do you know what?” she went on in her previous eager manner. “Starstar has different eyes, the left one is yellow, and the right one is blue! Can you even imagine it? Oh, I’m so very much in love with him!”  
Oakkit imagined. In her head poor EagleClan leader had got not only two different eyes, but also two kinds of fur: pure black on the left and dark tabby on the right, and the dividing line continued from his muzzle till the tip of his tail. Oakkit blinked, trying to get rid of the image.  
“You know,” she said, giving Blackpaw a suspicious look, “he is a cat from another Clan. You can’t be in love with him, that’s against the Code.”  
“Oh, come off it!” Blackpaw chuckled. “You'll fall in love with him the fist moment you see him, trust me.”  
“Um, I don't think so,” Oakkit responded, the image of the two-faced cat still haunting her.  
“Trust me,” Blackpaw repeated, her wide friendly smile somehow intimidating. “Starstar is…”  
“Starstar, Starstar, Starstar!” Longpaw looked out of the apprentices' den, his light fur was muddled, pieces of moss tangled with it. A small dark feather on his head granted him a funny expression, but clearly he wasn’t having fun. “Could you please shut up? You talked about him at the Nest of Rocks, you talked about him on our way back, you talked about him here and kept me awake all night, and now again!” He padded out with a scowl on his face. “And if another mouse-brain is going to fall for that unlucky furball, I'll move to WoodClan, I swear!” he gave Oakkit a grim leer.  
“Good riddance!” Blackpaw scoffed. “I bet you'll fit in.”  
“I will, but you won't,” Longpaw snarled. “Kittypet!”  
Blackpaw’s eyes grew dark, and a growl rose from her throat.  
Oakkit quietly stepped back. “Why are they always quarrelling?” she thought. “What will happen when the real enemy comes?”  
“What’s going on?” she heard an unpleasant voice that made her flinch and skip aside as quickly as possible. Blackpaw smoothed her fur and turned to her mentor.  
“Just a small misunderstanding, Molewhisker,” she bowed her head politely, but Oakkit saw how nervously she emerged her claws and hid them again.  
“Well,” Molewhisker said after regarding both apprentices sternly for a while, “It’d better be, because I'm taking you both for training. Come.” Saying all this she turned away and headed towards the camp entrance. Blackpaw silently followed her mentor, her own chin raised up and face dismal almost as much as the older cat’s, but Longpaw seemed to be surprised.  
“What, now?” he asked. “Can I at least wash myself?”  
“No,” was the response. “Hurry up.”  
Molewhisker and her apprentice sped up. “Mouse dung,” said Longpaw and threw himself after them.  
Oakkit saw them off, and new, unknown feelings built in her heart. She had always wanted to leave the camp, just like any other kit who is old enough to eat fresh-kill, but now her paws were simply itching to follow the three cats, she felt like she was trapped and could not break free. Now she was even ready to tolerate the company of Molewhisker, who scared her to death, and those two stupid furballs, who were able to think about leaving the best Clan ever. But she had to wait for more than a moon; some older cats would have laughed at her desperation, but for a kitten it was a long time indeed. She sighed and hung her head. Oakkit could not return to the stuffy and overcrowded nursery, but outside she had nothing to do and nobody to talk to, and she was bound to wander the clearing pointlessly. At last she decided to look for Icekit's patch of moss with no better reason than just to pass the time.  
And she found it right behind the Whitecloud’s den.

Shinekit was watching her sisters attack Icekit in the clearing, her figure frozen still in the entrance of now empty nursery. Her face was expressionless as always, and nobody could tell what was on her mind while Swiftkit loudly accused Icekit of intruding LeafClan's camp.  
“Go away, nasty WoodClan leader!” she growled, jumping and waving her forepaws in front of the older kit. “Go away, or I'll tear you to pieces!”  
“No,” Icekit responded in a quiet low drawl. “I’ll taste your blood first. My name is Smokestar, and I kill puny kittens!”  
“Spottedsnake! Attack him!” Swiftkit yelled. “Let him see how LeafClan warriors fight!”  
Then both sisters rushed forward, but Icekit dodged their unskillful approach easily and let out a chilling laughter as the younger kits landed with a thud. A small frown appeared on Shinekit’s face; it appeared and vanished as if a tiny cloud had crossed the sun. Than she heard her name spoken quietly and caught sight of Brightfur and Whitecloud. “Not a single word!” Brightfur said. She gave her daughter a worried glance and looked pleadingly at the medicine cat. Whitecloud in her turn regarded the golden kit wistfully and indistinctly replied, all Shinekit managed to hear was ‘take a look'. Then the queen withdrew and Whitecloud headed in the kitten’s direction. Shinekit continued watching the pretended battle that was slowly growing quite genuine.  
“Did you hear what we were talking about?” Whitecloud asked. She got no response but went on nevertheless. “Your mother is worried about you, she said you can't speak. But do you know what? I think you can.”  
“Hey!” Swiftkit called. She saw Whitecloud and stopped the game. “What are you doing to her?”  
“Oh, nothing special,” the medicine cat answered. “Don’t bother.”  
But Swiftkit still padded towards them, her eyes blazing angrily. She glared at Whitecloud, not in the eye though, since her gaze altered between the white cat's muzzle and an old scar on her forehead.  
“She doesn't need you, okay?” with these words Swiftkit suddenly stretched forward and grabbed her sister's ear. She tugged, and Shinekit winced and bent to the left, following the grip of Swiftkit's teeth, yet didn’t make a sound. “She’s alright, see?” Swiftkit let go of her ear.  
“I see,” Whitecloud smiled. “There is nothing to worry about. And you have a WoodClan leader to beat, don't you?”  
Swiftkit hesitated for a moment, but then nodded grimly and retreated.  
“She can't stand being beaten,” Whitecloud said quietly after making sure that the tortoiseshell kitten could no longer hear her. “And she can't do anything about it either. That’s the power we, medicine cats, have. Do you want power, Shinekit?”  
Shinekit didn't answer, but Whitecloud didn’t need her to.  
“Do you know what they'll say about you, a tiny kit who doesn’t talk?” she went on. “They’ll pity you.”  
At that statement Shinekit's eyes widened, for the first time she actually raised her head and met Whitecloud’s gaze. The medicine cat's face was serious, she studied the kit attentively.  
“They'll say ‘poor thing, she is so shy', or maybe they’ll assume that you're deaf,” Whitecloud went on. “Or, what is more likely, they will not even notice you.”  
Shinekit turned away, her face blank as always once more, but Whitecloud reached out and touched the kit's chin with her forepaw.  
“Shinekit. Look at me,” she said, and Shinekit impulsively obeyed at first, but quickly averted her eyes just like Swiftkit was doing before her. “Don’t be scared,” Whitecloud said gently. “I’m not putting you to sleep, all I want is a small talk.”  
Shinekit looked at her again as if encouraging to continue, and so Whitecloud did.  
“Look at me,” she repeated, but this time her words had another meaning. “I am neither a leader nor an elder, but they respect me. When I ask, they answer, when I speak, they listen, when I demand, they obey. I have it all now, but in the beginning I was a nothing. Do you want to know what I did to gain such respect? I talked to them.”  
Shinekit was listening to that speech with slowly growing astonishment, her eyes narrowed, body tense. To Whitecloud’s last words she made a sound that could be recognized as a scoff of disbelief.  
“Yes,” the white cat confirmed her words with the most sincere look. “I talked to them, gave them advice, and they saw that I'm smarter than them. This is the only way to achieve gratitude of your Clanmates, if we don’t consider killing foxes and fighting badgers an option.”  
For a while there was silence, if the noise Swiftkit and Icekit were making didn’t count. Two she-cats, the young one and the older one, studied one another thoughtfully, both waiting for what was about to happen next.  
“I’ll think about it,” Shinekit suddenly said and flinched, taken aback by the sound of her own voice, clear and high-pitched. Whitecloud was surprised as well, but she smiled warmly, her green eyes shining with gladness.  
“Well, these are lovely first words,” Whitecloud began, but her speech was interrupted by an especially loud yell of Swiftkit, who failed to corner ‘Smokestar’ again. The medicine cat glanced at them briefly and slyly leered at Shinekit. “They are doing it all wrong, aren't they?” she asked, and Shinekit nodded. “Why not show them the proper way, then?” suggested the medicine cat. “Come on!” she added, seeing that Shinekit hesitated in doubts. “Make yourself important.”  
Shinekit considered it, and them got up and headed determinately towards the players.

Oakkit was idling in the clearing, she was so lost in thought that she didn’t notice her father until he sat beside her and asked:  
“Why aren't you playing with the others?”  
“Is it really like this?” instead of answering the question Oakkit asked her own one.  
“What is?” Nightfrost replied in the same manner.  
“Threats, name calling,” the tabby pointed towards the playing kits. “Is it how it happens in real battles?”  
“Hm,” the deputy responded. He frowned, trying to figure out the most accurate answer. “I guess it depends. But, honestly, why don’t you play today?”  
Oakkit sighed. How could she describe the changes that simple conversation with Blackpaw had caused in her? She was afraid that Nightfrost might laugh.  
“I'll be an apprentice soon”, she said at last.  
“Soon?” her father echoed with a small amount of friendly humor.  
“Yes, soon!” there was a challenge in her voice now, and her eyes flared as she raised her head and glared at Nightfrost. “I’m almost five moons old! I’ll be able to leave the camp, to go hunting, to see the Nest of Rocks, Starstar, and other things, why do you think I'm interested in stupid games?”  
Nightfrost laughed indeed, but there was no mockery in that. He nuzzled his daughter’s head and nipped her ear playfully.  
“Don’t get too excited about Starstar, he's a mere young leader,” he said. “The only thing unusual about him is his name”.  
“I’m not too excited!” Oakkit exclaimed with annoyance. “I'm just tired of being stuck in the camp while everybody else is doing something.”  
“But you can’t change it,” Nightfrost said. “You can only wait and enjoy yourself. Believe me, a day will come when you regret you can’t play all the time and do nothing.”  
“Do you?” Oakkit asked, frowning in distrust. Such point of view was foreign to her, and she did not expect her father to say it otherwise than as a matter of a joke.  
“Yes,” Nightfrost smiled, it really was a joke, but the one that could have been partly true. “Each time when I have to get up early and waken the patrol.”  
“Mudstorm says we have to be the best,” Oakkit remembered her mother’s most preferred words.  
“Sounds like her,” the deputy titled his head in a laughable consideration. “When we were apprentices she drove me insane by always catching more prey than me and beating me in training battles. It took me seasons to realize that she fancied me.”  
Oakkit couldn’t help smiling as she imagined her parents as apprentices. No matter how often they fought, they still fancied each other, unalike Blackpaw and Longpaw.  
“I don't know what Mudstorm tells you,” now Nightfrost spoke seriously, “But you don’t have to prove anything, you are not somehow different. We all already love you, no matter what.”  
“What do you mean?” Oakkit asked, surprised. “How can I be different?”  
For a heartbeat Nightfrost looked off-balance, but he the next moment he was smiling gently, and his voice sounded absolutely casual when he said:  
“Never mind, I was just questioning Mudstorm’s teaching manner.”  
Oakkit turned away and sighed. Usually she liked talking to Nightfrost more than to Mudstorm, since the latter was strict and mean, but now she felt that her father failed to understand her. And Mudstorm surely would have, if there was someone always eager to work, it was her.  
“I'm just tired of doing nothing,” she summed up her worries and sighed again.  
“In such a case I've got good news for you,” Nightfrost grinned, “I arranged it with Thunderstrike and Windstep that you're helping them with dens today, the apprentices are way too busy. Now go, save Smokestar, he still can be useful.”  
With a joyful roar Oakkit jumped up and ran to rescue Icekit, who was spread on the ground helpless, Swiftkit and Spottedkit on top of him. Shinekit was sitting beside them with a small smile of a job well done.


	6. Chapter 5

Oakkit's heart was pounding, she could hardly hold still as she was sitting upright under gazes of the whole Clan. Finally, after a painfully long moon, her dreams were coming true: she was about to become an apprentice.  
“This moonhigh, we gather together to name two new apprentices,” Littlestar's voice, distant and eerie, came from above. “Come forward.”  
Oakkit hastily stepped forward, and Icekit followed her. She quickly glanced at the leader, and the crooked claw of the moon reflected in her widened eyes. Oakkit still couldn’t believe it all was really happening, she had a weird feeling that the ceremony would be broken, and she would have to wait for moons and moons to come.  
“From this day forward until she has earned her warrior name, this apprentice will be known as Oakpaw,” Littlestar went on.  
The tabby froze, only the fur on her back was moving. “It happened!” she thought as the words of the ceremony echoed in her head. “I am Oakpaw!” She looked around, studying faces of the warriors, trying to guess who would become her mentor. Everybody around her seemed to share the same thought, the clearing grew unusually quiet as the cats had held their breath.  
“Squirreltail,” Littlestar said, and the young warrior sharply raised his head, surprise and amazement written on his face. “The time has come for you to have your first apprentice. It is a great responsibility to train new warriors, and a great happiness as well. Pass Oakpaw the skills you learnt during your own apprenticeship and teach her like your mentor taught you.”  
The orange tom nodded nervously and headed towards Oakpaw. She also made a few steps, knowing what he was going to do. She had been waiting for that moment, she had imagined it and feared that she would do something stupid, and, obviously, so did Squirreltail. And there they stood face to face, studying each other as if they hadn’t met before, and then Squirreltail clumsily ducked his head and brushed noses with his new apprentice.  
When their noses parted, Oakpaw felt that something let her go at last. Everything happened just like she had wanted, she was an apprentice now, and she was going to make her Clan proud of her. She purred happily, and Squirreltail smiled at her, but the ceremony wasn’t over yet, so they stepped away, giving space for her brother and his soon-be mentor.  
“This apprentice will be known as Icepaw,” said Littlestar, and he raised his chin in his usual prideful manner. He gazed haughtily at his Clanmates, and his thick fur was neat and smooth as if he wasn’t even slightly excited by the ongoing events. Oakpaw wondered who his mentor would be, clearly not Dewblaze.  
“Thunderstrike,” Littlestar meowed, and Oakpaw remembered how the leader had promised to give Icepaw the best mentor possible. “You will begin Icepaw's training. You have already had an apprentice, and may your experience help you this time.”  
Black and white she-cat nodded solemnly, left her place in the row of warriors, and welcomed her apprentice, both of them very composed and grand as their noses slightly touched, and afterwards they exchanged equally glad and appreciative looks, apparently happy with Littlestar’s choice. Oakpaw couldn’t suppress a chuckle, watching her brother suddenly act so serious.  
“I can't believe he's not giggling,” she whispered into Squirreltail’s ear.  
“He isn't,” Squirreltail responded in a similar whisper, “You are.” He smiled and so did Oakpaw; maybe there was some ultimate rule that littermates complete each other, and it was the reason why she suddenly felt so light-hearted.  
“Oakpaw!” Blackpaw was the first to shout.  
“Oakpaw! Icepaw!” the rest of the Clan joined in.  
Icepaw sat down by Oakpaw’s side, and they listened together to the voices that welcomed them, feeling at last like the real members of their Clan. It was wonderful, wonderful and unbelievable.  
“I have one more announcement,” Littlestar said when the warriors calmed down. “Since those two became apprentices, Mudstorm is moving into the warriors’ den again.” After saying this she hesitated for a moment at the Watching Tree and then jumped down, showing that the meeting was over.  
The stillness was broken immediately; everybody started talking at one time. Brightfur rushed to congratulate her brother personally, her kits followed her, and Oakpaw suddenly found herself nose to nose with her previous denmates.  
“Congratulations,” Shinekit said with emotionless politeness. “I know how much you wanted it.”  
“Um, thanks,” Oakpaw felt uncomfortable under the deep gaze of the weird kit, whose eyes turned dark silver in the moonlight, but were as unfathomable as always.  
“We'll be next,” Swiftkit reminded grimly, and Oakpaw silently thanked StarClan that she would no longer share a den with this nuisance, since the tortoiseshell kit had grown unbearable, and even now her voice was full of envy and anger. They would have to live together in the warriors’ den, of course, but it seemed to be going to happen in such distant times that Oakpaw couldn’t even imagine it.  
“That’s a great thing,” Spottedkit said with a sincere smile. “Tell me about everything, alright?”  
“I will,” Oakpaw promised.  
Nightfrost and Mudstorm joined them, probably with a view to save Squirreltail from his sister’s grip.  
“So, treat my daughter well, okay?” Nightfrost said, smiling slightly. “No need to make her climb trees on the first day.”  
“A bit of tree climbing won't do any harm,” Mudstorm opposed and stretched her body out, muscles rolled under her pelt. “Great StarClan, it is so amazing to be back!”  
“I don't know, I like the nursery,” Brightfur replied as she turned away from Squirreltail and tucked her kits closer. “Maybe I'll have more when those three grow up.” With such words she leaned down and started licking them. Swiftkit hissed and struggled.  
“And I agree with Mudstorm,” Thunderstrike said. Icepaw and she proudly walked together, very much alike. “You there,” she turned to her apprentice, “are very lucky. You will have kits without stepping a foot in the nursery.”  
“I won't have kits,” Icepaw wrinkled his nose. “All nice she-cats are taken.”  
Thunderstrike laughed. Meanwhile Brightfur was trying to persuade Swiftkit return to the nursery and go to sleep, since it was very late for the kits to stay up. The tiny she-cat got angry at a single reminder of sleep, which wasn’t very much surprising, and objected loudly and noisily. When Brightfur went out of commonsense reasons and finally tried to catch the nuisance and make her go by force, she hid behind Squirreltail, unsuccessfully though, since the latter moved away with an sorry sigh, and the order was restored. All cats were returning to their everyday life, most were going to sleep, and the guardians took their places by the camp entrance.  
“We've prepared two new nests for you!” Blackpaw said. She came up to her younger friend with the most sincere gladness in her features. Oakpaw nodded, she remembered again that they no longer sleep in the nursery. It all was so new and fascinating, since she had never actually been inside of the apprentices' den before. Icepaw and she withdrew right after their mentors wished good night to them, leaving the warriors to share their feelings and ideas, and followed Blackpaw as she led them towards a new place to live.  
“Sweet dreams,” Mudstorm’s voice came from behind. It was serious again, and with a ghost of worry.  
“Sweet dreams, Mudstorm,” Oakpaw responded, slightly surprised by her mother's reaction, since she never considered Mudstorm to be capable of something other than endless ambition.  
Soon they reached their destination, and for the first time in her life Oakpaw stepped inside of the apprentices’ den. It was obviously bigger than the nursery, with more holes in the walls, where the forming branches were tangled together less neatly, there and then a kitten could have crawled out. But again, the purpose of this den was quite different. As the youngest apprentices shoved in, Snowpaw and Honeypaw greeted them warmly, only Longpaw in his nest was faking sleep.  
“Here you go,” Blackpaw said and pointed towards two fresh piles of moss by the entrance.  
“Right here?” Icepaw asked with disbelief in his voice. “It will be cold at night.”  
“That’s the place for the younger apprentices,” Snowpaw explained. “I also slept there when Squirreltail and Brightfur were apprentices yet.”  
“OK then,” Icepaw sighed, and Oakpaw poked his side. “Hey,” she said, “you became an apprentice, not an elder! We can manage a bit of night coldness.”  
“Is everything alright?” Squirreltail suddenly shoved his head into the den. Oakpaw nodded and he looked at them all seriously. “In such a case I suggest you all go to sleep. Today is a busy day.”  
He wished them good night one more time and was off. Oakkit placed herself on a small new nest, which was her and her alone, and curled tightly, thinking about what would happen next. Now she had everything she was longing for during the past moon, but such was her nature that she couldn’t possibly have enough. She thought about how she would become the best hunter and fighter in the Clan, how she would earn her warrior name, and what it would be like. Oakclaw? Oakstorm? Oakfang? Slowly and without realizing it she drifted to sleep.  
…she was a leader, and she brought her Clan at the Gathering, and she jumped atop a crooked rock, and was met with a cold blue gaze of her brother…

In the morning voices from the outside wakened Oakpaw and Icepaw.  
“Time to wake up!” Thunderstrike called.  
Oakpaw immediately did so. She sprang out of the den into the fresh morning air and made a big jump, welcoming the first day of her apprenticeship. Icepaw followed her outside, but he did not rush, only slowly yawned and stretched his body.  
“What are we doing today?” Oakpaw asked Squirreltail, energy and eagerness in her eyes.  
“Wait,” a voice came before Squirreltail had a chance to answer. The cats turned around and looked at Mudstorm questioningly. The warrior stood nearby with a grim and determinate face. “Wait,” she said again, “I need to talk to my kits. Family issue.”  
“Oh,” responded the orange cat hastily, “family issue, right. We'll wait, go ahead.”  
“Come with me,” with such words Mudstorm turned around and padded towards the medicine cat's den. Her kits trotted after her, terrifying thoughts roaming in their heads. At the moment they reached the den they had already supposed the worst: what if there was something that would prevent them from becoming LeafClan apprentices?  
“I brought them,” Mudstorm said, stepping inside of the den.  
“Good,” Whitecloud responded in the same stiff voice. “Come in, both of you.”  
Oakpaw and Icepaw joined the older cats inside the den, and Oakpaw noticed that Ashpaw wasn’t there. Somehow it had worried her even more than the rest, the thought of a news so bad that it couldn’t be announced in front of the medicine cat’s apprentice was truly unnerving. When they all took their places, she was the first to break the silence.  
“Mudstorm, but we're… we're Clanborn, right? There's nothing like this?”  
“Of course!” the tabby warrior flinched. “Nightfrost and I are really your parents, don’t even doubt it!”  
Oakpaw sighed with relief, but the others still had long faces. Whitecloud and Mudstorm exchanged glances and seemed to reach some conclusion.  
“You see,” the medicine cat began, but then stopped and looked at the younger ones with some new thought. “Do you know that we two are sisters?”  
Icepaw nodded, and Oakpaw shook her head: for both of them it was completely new information.  
“We are,” Mudstorm confirmed.  
“Do you know what happens to warriors after they die?” Whitecloud went on.  
“They go to StarClan,” Icepaw answered, it was obvious.  
“Not all of them,” Mudstorm noted grimly.  
“Those who lived a decent life do,” said Whitecloud, “but all traitors, murderers, and criminals against the Code go… someplace else.”  
“And as StarClan warriors can reach out for our leaders and medicine cats, those cats can visit our dreams too,” Mudstorm said. “It only requires more effort on their part.”  
“Mudstorm,” Oakpaw felt bewilderment and worry. “Why are you telling us all this? We aren’t going to break the Code.”  
“The thing is,” Whitecloud took the lead again, she was shifting in her place uncomfortably, her voice tense, “our ancestor was a very bad cat. He murdered for fun and provoked wars between the Clans.”  
“And he still visits us, his descendants, in our dreams,” finished Mudstorm.  
For a moment there was silence, Oakpaw and Icepaw froze, trying to proceed through what they were told. Whitecloud shut her eyes, the tip of her tail was trembling.  
“Do you mean that he will come to us?” Oakpaw asked.  
“Yes, he will,” Mudstorm responded. “And he will try to hurt you. I didn’t tell you about it before because you were too young, but now you are his next target.”  
“Did he visit you?” Icepaw prickled up his ears, more interested than scared. “What was it like?”  
“It was bad,” Mudstorm replied dryly, glaring at her son. But then her face softened, anger in her eyes had turned into sorrow. “But you should remember: he won't kill you,” she added quickly. “As his only connection with the real world, you are too precious for him. He will tell you ugly lies about how everybody despises you, he will threaten to cripple you, and you must never, never believe him.”  
“You have us,” Whitecloud suddenly jerked her head up. “You are not alone, we've been there, and you can always come to us and talk about it.”  
“Um, thanks,” Oakpaw said clumsily, she was still trying to think through it, puzzled and confused. “Does everybody know about it?”  
“Not apprentices,” Mudstorm replied. “There are rules, they don’t tell their kits about it until they became warriors.”  
They… the very word sounded odd. In the morning Oakpaw did not think about her Clanmates as of ‘them’, for her there had been only ‘us’, and Mudstorm had just divided the world in two parts. It felt wrong, how there could be something she wasn't able to discuss with Blackpaw? Weren’t they all LeafClan cats? Oakpaw hung her head and bit her lip.  
“That’s all,” Mudstorm sighed. “Now go. Your mentors are waiting for you.” She sadly shook her head. “I’m sorry, I wish it wasn’t happening to you. But this is your destiny, you can't change it, you can only be ready.”  
The siblings left the den and slowly walked towards their mentors. Oakpaw felt sick, her vigor and good mood were entirely lost. The thought of something she couldn’t share with her Clanmates was bugging her, she was like a stranger now, a spy, a cat without a Clan. And there was truly nothing she could do, she was not responsible for her failure, so it was not for her to fix. The word ‘destiny’ was weighting her down, and she was ready to cry when she heard Icepaw laugh quietly, the sound of it way more creepy and evil than when he was imitating Smokestar.  
“Ugly things, eh?” the laughter transformed into a low growl. “I’ll show him ‘ugly things'! He'll need something more than that to take me down! What do they think I am? A kittypet?”  
“Are you planning to fight him?” Oakpaw asked, a bit frightened by her brother's sudden outbreak, but nevertheless somehow relieved, since he was still going to do something when she felt beaten.  
“Of course I am!” Icepaw glared at her, his gaze was intense and heavy, were his eyes yellow, he would have been a spitting image of Mudstorm. “I will not just sit there and whine about destiny! Some dead cat, so what?”  
“They…” sudden memories popped into Oakpaw's mind, “They think you're like him!”  
“What?” Icepaw leered at her.  
“That’s the prophesy I’ve overheard, Whitecloud said that you remind her of someone bad, that must be him,” Oakpaw blurted out. “Be careful, alright? I don't like the way it looks.”  
“In such a case I will definitely defeat him, that’s what the prophesies are about,” Icepaw smiled unpleasantly. “Relax, Oakpaw, I'm not the one who has to be careful.”  
Oakpaw frowned, but her brother’s words indeed somehow calmed her down. She had heard about the prophesies that foretold arrival of great heroes, half the stories she was told included this detail. It was hard to imagine Icepaw as such hero, but he was her brother, and she knew that he meant no harm. There was some common sense in what he had said: since when warriors give up in front of the enemy?  
“Come what may,” Oakpaw made up her mind. “I will think about it too. Let's go.” The things Icepaw had said returned her the power, she was still upset, but now also angry and elated. At that moment Oakpaw understood perfectly that thirst and ambition that was always pushing Mudstorm forward.  
They padded towards their mentors, who were waiting for them with expressionless faces, and Icepaw stepped forward, his tail raised upright.  
“Well, and where do we start?” he asked cheerfully and bluntly.  
“My, that’s the spirit!” Thunderstrike laughed, and the situation suddenly seemed less tense. “Come after us, we'll leave our marks at the Small Birches.”  
The sun shined bright when they left the camp.


	7. Chapter 6

As two young apprentices and their mentors were going deeper into the land of bushes, Oakpaw felt she was losing the sense of direction. LeafClan territory was a lot bigger and a lot less comfortable than she could have imagined, bushes getting in her way, sharp branches tangling in her fur and scratching her skin, dry leaves loudly crashing under her feet as she determinately padded after Thunderstrike and Squirreltail, who didn’t seem to have any difficulties, and ran into every obstacle they skillfully dodged. Oakpaw leered at Icepaw and saw he was having the same difficulties: a small relief, yet still a relief. After a while she was out of breath and stumbled even more than in the beginning of the trek, and only then the mentors stopped.  
“You are moving the wrong way,” Thunderstrike said. “True LeafClan warrior does not crawl from under one bush to get stuck in another.”  
The apprentices said nothing, they were enjoying the break, and the truth of Thunderstrike's words was obvious.  
“You have to use your eyes to follow the track, you don’t just see what you're heading towards, you should also pay attention to everything around you and, at least but not at last, what’s under your feet,” the black and white cat went on. “Leaves you step on, branches you crack, bushes you bump into – it all makes noise that will tell your prey or your enemy where exactly you are. It will take time for you to learn proper LeafClan walk, and you have to start learning right now.”  
Oakpaw realized that all the way here she was focused on how to keep up with the older cats and almost didn’t look down. She glanced at the ground interestedly and poked a half of a big leaf. She caught her breath began to wonder how close to the border they were.  
“Now you had a rest,” Thunderstrike said. “We can go on.”  
The cats got up and continued their journey. This time Oakpaw and Icepaw were careful and mindful of the surroundings, yet they still lacked skill and were hit by low branches. Oakpaw was the first to notice small hard yellow leaves that didn't seem to belong to the nearest bushes, and Squirreltail confirmed that those were indeed the leaves of birches. Cats walked on, and soon they came to a tiny valley, where bushes were growing less stuffy, and young thin trees with white trunks were set. The LeafClan warriors went deeper, until the trees surrounded them, and Oakpaw finally smelled sharp and dangerous scent: the unfamiliar odor of unfamiliar cats. They were standing at the border and staring right into the territory of WoodClan, a darker place marked with pines and firs. The border was invisible, but in front of the tabby apprentice shadows roamed, while behind her light traveled freely through the branches of small bushes.  
“How can they live there?” she gasped.  
“No idea,” Thunderstrike grumbled. She looked around and sniffed the air. “It is said,” she began in a grim voice, “that in the beginning there were no birches. The forest started right here, and nobody questioned LeafClan’s right to own this place. But the forest continued growing farther, and WoodClan for some reason decided that they can claim the Small Birches as theirs. Hilarious belief,” she scoffed. “But it means that we should be extremely careful while checking this place. WoodClan are treacherous.”  
When she finished, Squirreltail came to the nearest tree, raised his tail, and left his mark on the trunk. Icepaw watched him curiously.  
“Can I do it too?” he asked.  
“Of course!” the orange cat responded. “You both should, so WoodClan will see that we are breeding new warriors.”  
And so they did. Oakpaw was pleased to feel that for a moment the smell of LeafClan outdid the disgusting enemy scent. But then the breeze had brought something else, and the warriors jolted their heads and widened their nostrils simultaneously.  
“Look,” Squirreltail quietly said. “Proudhawk.”  
Oakpaw looked, and blood rushed in her veins with an unseen speed. Far away, in the gap between two big old birches a WoodClan warrior was standing. He was fog gray, eyes sky blue and cold, and his whole figure emerged a threat. He also was giant, bigger than Thunderstrike, to say nothing of Squirreltail, maybe even bigger than Nightfrost.  
“He is alone and in his territory,” Thunderstrike said with despise in her voice. “You two, say hi if he comes closer.”  
But Proudhawk just stood there for a couple of heartbeats and then turned around and disappeared behind a tree. Fortunately for Oakpaw, since she was not sure she could manage a proper greeting without embarrassing herself by her shaking voice.  
“Who was that?” Icepaw’s voice was also far from dignified, though no less curious than usual.  
“Smokestar’s beloved grandson” Thunderstrike replied. “Posh like his name.”  
The cats spent a bit more time among the Small Birches, and then they took the way to the right and walked by the border line. Oakpaw still couldn’t overcome the shock of her first meeting with an enemy warrior. In comparison to him she felt so weak and meaningless, a yesterday kit with moons of trainings ahead. Proudhawk looked haughty and dangerous, somewhat like a more adult and alien version of Icepaw, and Oakpaw wondered whether she would be ever able to catch up. At that moment she swore that she would spend more time with Mudstorm and learn her bravery and strength.  
They followed a path traced with scent and sometimes marked it themselves, and Oakpaw began to notice that it is leading them up and up, first slightly and then more crooked. Her paws stumbled again, and she paid heed to rough stones stuck in the ground.  
“We are coming close to the Nest of Rocks,” Squirreltail announced, and her heart beat faster. To visit the Nest of Rocks in the sunhigh wasn’t, of course, as thrilling as at midnight, but it was still more than she expected for the first day of her apprenticeship. Oakpaw occasionally raised her head and saw the mountains, they loomed above unusually close and high, and she remembered about Starstar. Would she see him too?  
The bushes turned more rare, and there was a clearing ahead. Icepaw and Oakpaw forgot about all the dangers and rushed out there, yelling happily. This is how for the first time in her life Oakpaw had seen the Nest of Rocks.  
It was where the mountains began. Two rows of stone, like a roots of an old tree, embraced a clearing big enough to contain all Clans with their warriors, elders, queens, and kits, and where they met there was a cliff, a small curve on the surface of the mountain. Oakpaw just stood there and imagined this place lit up by moonlight, rough stones turning into silver and black stripes, three leaders on the cliff, and three Clans below…  
“Are you coming or not?” Icepaw called from the foot of the rocks, where he started climbing. His sister sharply shook her head and followed him immediately. The feeling of rock under her paws wasn’t like anything she experienced before, but she found it rather easy to crawl up, her claws fitting the small scratches of the stone. Icepaw, however, had some difficulties.  
“Mouse dung!” he cursed when one of his paws slipped. “How do EagleClan manage it?”  
“Their pads are harder!” Squirreltail shouted. “I’ve checked!”  
Spread wide on the rock, Oakpaw glanced behind. Their mentors were standing side by side and looking up attentively, smiles on their faces. The tabby felt unusually confident, so she sped up and reached a small cozy peak at the same time with her brother. From there she looked back again, and this time she was met with a stunning view: the whole LeafClan territory was lying right before her, an endless land of bushes that continued until the very sky, while at the right a forest rose up, tall dark fir-trees loomed mysteriously and grimly. It all looked so vast and giant, and yet strangely exposed, Oakpaw was sure that if she climbed higher and trespassed the territory of EagleClan, she would be able to see small figures of LeafClan cats, not guarded from above, and both camps. She couldn’t help wondering how it was to be an EagleClan warrior, to look down at other Clans every day. But then she shook off such thoughts, they did not befit a LeafClan cat.  
They carefully climbed down and stood in front of their mentors. Squirreltail stepped forward and looked at Oakpaw merrily.  
“Remember: I did not make you do it,” he said. “Just in case Nightfrost asks.”  
“So,” Thunderstrike cleared her throat, drawing the apprentices’ attention. “This is the Nest of Rocks. If you behave, you will be able to attend it next full moon.”  
“I will!” Oakpaw promised. She already pictured herself talking to cats from other Clans, learning something new, and then telling Spottedkit about it, just like Blackpaw used to tell her.  
“And now let's go home,” Thunderstrike said. “But answer me first which direction we should take.”  
This caught Oakpaw by surprise. She tried to remember the crooked way they were following, imagine how many times they turned, but unsuccessfully. It was just too much of places, of new impressions. She feared she was about to fail her first task, but then an idea crossed her mind, and she closed her eyes and remembered how it all looked when she was watching from the rocks. The border between LeafClan and WoodClan was clearly visible, and so were the Small Birches far away. And before they came to the birches, they followed a more or less straight path, at least about as straight as an ordinary stick. And that path was slightly shorter than way from the birches here…  
Oakpaw opened her eyes.  
“There!” she exclaimed triumphantly, pointing a way with her tail.  
“Are you kidding?” Icepaw leered at her with displeasure.  
“Good!” Squirreltail’s eyes lit up. “Very good. Let's go!”  
“What!?” Icepaw looked shocked. “How could you know that?”  
“I thought about what I saw from above,” Oakpaw said, she was bewildered that her smart brother hadn't guessed first.  
“But you didn’t see the camp from above,” Icepaw held accusing tone, as if he did not believe her.  
“Enough quarrelling,” Thunderstrike rebuked them. “You remind me of two kits.”  
Ashamed, they made a couple of steps after their mentors, and then Icepaw suddenly rushed forward and sniffed the bushes.  
“There is a path!” he shouted, bad mood and suspicions were forgotten. “An old path where a lot of cats walked!”  
“Of course there is,” Squirreltail remarked. “We use it regularly.”  
Then they took the path home. This time Oakpaw and Icepaw were walking in front of their mentors, since they could already sense the difference between a path and a gap in bushes which led to nowhere, and they were proud to demonstrate it. Deep in LeafClan territory Oakpaw now felt at home, after seeing dark and dangerous woods and high distant mountains neat and sunny lands looked like the most comfortable place. She began arranging the events of the day in her head, so she would be able to tell someone about it, and her mind tripped over the conversation with Mudstorm and Whitecloud. Yes, there was something she wasn't supposed to talk about, and she had almost forgotten it. But Oakpaw looked at Icepaw’s confident and deliberate face, and her uprising worry faded. They would become the best warriors in the Clan, and nobody can stop them. At that very moment a new thought visited her: if they are planning to beat that evil ancestor, why there should be only four of them? She would grow up and have a lot of kits, and so would Icepaw. They would learn how to share dreams – in one of stories Antfall told her there were a tom and a she-cat who could visit each other while asleep – and they would attack the enemy together and get rid of him forever. She looked at Icepaw again and wished they had been in the camp already, it was impossible to talk about this issue so close to their mentors.

Swiftkit was alone and bored. Spottedkit was in the elders' den, listening to one of those stupid stories about forbidden love, Shinekit was with Whitecloud, as if there was some point in tiptoeing around the medicine cat who already has an apprentice. Though at this thought Swiftkit had to confess that Shinekit hardly could tiptoe, but it did not change a thing. Her so-called sisters left her alone in the clearing and were enjoying themselves somewhere else. She tried talking to Longpaw, who had stepped by, but got only angry hiss in response. “He can,” Swiftkit thought with irritation, “he is an apprentice. I wish I was so big, I could have gone out and fight some trespassers.” But she couldn’t have gone out, and there were no trespassers in the camp. She raised her head and looked attentively at Rainstripe in the Watching Tree as she pointlessly wandered the clearing. Maybe some trespassers were close, and he would announce it. Or maybe she could climb there, and he would allow her to sit and watch with him. She was lost in thought and didn’t look where she was going, and she hardly avoided bumping into some cats. Both of them were already known to her, though she had never spoken to them, the first one was Mossfur, he dodged her without any comments, and the second one was Dewblaze, who almost tripped over her and stopped.  
“Carefully, kit,” she said with displeasure. “I could have crushed you.”  
“You be careful!” Swiftkit burst. She hated it when someone reminded her of her age and size. “If you stepped on me, I’d bite you!”  
She had heard Honey paw’s cheerful voice, the apprentice was inviting her father to go hunting. Dewblaze glanced there with a drawn face, and then turned to Swiftkit, trembling with anger.  
“You are a spoilt little furball, I'll talk to your mother!” she growled. “You must not speak like this with adults.”  
She must have expected Swiftkit to be scared, but the tortoiseshell kit had already crossed glances with Molewhisker, and Dewblaze failed in comparison. So Swiftkit stepped forward and tossed her head.  
“I am not a furball,” she snarled in her turn. “And you are running here like a pregnant badger!”  
“You… you…” Dewblaze choked. The silver she-cat looked around unconsciously, as if to fetch some audience. “Do you hear what she's talking about?” she exclaimed into nowhere.  
“Hey! I am not ‘she’! I'm here!” Swiftkit shouted. “And who are you talking to, StarClan?”  
“You dirty piece of mouse dung!” Dew blaze’s eyes flared, and she tried to grab Swiftkit by her back. “Where is your mother?”  
“What is going on here, in StarClan’s name?” they have heard a low voice. There was Mudstorm. Swiftkit stepped away a bit, Mudstorm was scary. The tabby warrior didn’t always looked threatening like Molewhisker, but she somehow managed her haughty nuisance kits, and it impressed Swiftkit.  
“She is…” Dewblaze began.  
“Oh, come off it,” Mudstorm interrupted her. “She is just a kit.” She slowly moved forward. “Behave. You,” she said quietly, looking Swiftkit in the eye.  
Swiftkit backed up, but she was not going to retreat so soon.  
“She could have stepped on me!” she complained.  
“Then go to Brightfur and whine, she'll pity you,” Mudstorm responded in the same low tone that reminded of Whitecloud and made Swiftkit shiver. “If you keep crying, you’ll never become a warrior.”  
Swiftkit wanted to say that she was not crying, that it was Dewblaze who whined and cried, but Mudstorm now looked completely like Whitecloud.   
The kit turned around and ran. The day was ruined.

Oakpaw and Icepaw proudly marched into the camp and immediately looked around in case that somebody had seen how they returned from patrol like any other apprentices. Nobody was looking in their direction, but they weren’t disappointed by it.  
“You must be hungry,” Squirreltail said. “Eat now, and later I'll show you where we find moss for new nests.”  
Even this much less pleasant side of apprenticeship was met eagerly. Oakpaw and Icepaw padded towards the fresh-kill pile, where they picked up two mice. When they settled with their food under branches of a big bramble bush that was a usual place for apprentices to eat, Oakpaw decided to talk to Icepaw about her ideas.  
“Who do you like, Honeypaw, Blackpaw, or Spottedkit?” she asked, leaving nuisance Swiftkit, weird Shinekit, and the medicine cat’s apprentice Ashpaw out.  
“I don't exactly hate them all,” her brother replied, surprised.  
“In a romantical way, mouse-brain.”  
“Littlestar,” Icepaw responded and smirked at his sister’s angry face. “She's a tough old one. Why are you asking me those things at all?”  
Oakpaw explained her plan.  
“Well, I liked Lilybreeze,” Icepaw said wistfully. “I wish Ashpaw was more alike her and not a medicine cat.”  
“Everybody liked Lilybreeze,” Oakpaw responded grimly. “Forget about Ashpaw, she is not an option.”  
“Honeypaw, then,” Icepaw decided. “And you?”  
“Snowpaw,” answered Oakpaw, she had already thought through it.  
Icepaw gave her a skeptical look.  
“So we drag both Mossfur's kits into it?” he asked. “He won’t be grateful.”  
Oakpaw sighed. She knew how much Honeypaw and Snowpaw meant for their father, and she was absolutely sure that he wouldn’t like his grandkits to be some kind of Dream Warriors. But the thought of having kits with Longpaw was not a pleasant one. What if they would be like him?  
They finished eating, Icepaw spotted their past denmates, got up, and headed there. Oakpaw was about to follow him, but she saw Nightfrost entering the camp and rushed towards the black deputy.  
“Do you know what?” she shouted, forgetting all prepared words. “I have seen a WoodClan warrior!”  
“Wonderful!” Nightfrost smiled widely. “Whom?”  
“Proudhawk,” Oakpaw blurted out happily.  
For a moment Nightfrost’s smile had frozen, he had exactly the same face expression like when Oakpaw had asked him how she could be special. The apprentice's heart sunk: she remembered what it had meant far too well.  
“What's wrong?” she asked her father, afraid to hear whatever dark secret was hidden from her again. “Don’t tell me it's nothing, I am not a kit.”  
“Well…” Nightfrost looked at her awkwardly. “His grandfather Smokestar swore to kill me a long time ago.”  
“So Proudhawk…” Oakpaw began slowly.  
“No, no!” Nightfrost shook his head. “This is only between me and Smokestar, you don’t have to fight Proudhawk for me. I'd like both of you- all three of you to stay out of it.”  
“OK,” Oakpaw responded, taken aback by her father's assumption. She did not consider herself ready to fight Proudhawk, and such thought never crossed her mind. “ I guess this is a day of discoveries,” she sighed and looked at Icepaw, who was chatting with the kits.  
Her brother was so confident and peaceful at the moment, he was expressively telling something captivating, and Spottedkit listened to him wide-eyed. Shinekit also seemed interested, she looked at the apprentice attentively, and her ears turned towards him. Only Swiftkit leered aside, the tip of her tail hitting the ground.  
“You aren’t facing it alone,” Nightfrost said quietly. “Not even with Icepaw only, all your Clanmates are here, and we love you.”  
Swiftkit raised her head, and her eyes met Oakpaw’s. There was such a deep and sheer hatred in that look, that the fur on Oakpaw’s back rose.


	8. Chapter 7

“Move,” Hawkface grumbled. “Are you asleep?”  
Oakpaw placed a pile of moss in the correct corner of the elders' den and hurried out as quickly as she could. Three quarters of a moon passed since she became an apprentice, and tonight was the night of the Gathering. Running across the clearing towards the camp entrance, she hesitated for a moment and squinted at a pale shape of the sun that was visible through silver clouds. In its dignified journey the sun was going down, yet still far from touching the ground. Oakpaw sighed and continued her way. She had more moss to fetch.  
She left the camp and headed towards EagleClan border, where a dozen of old oaks were growing. This was where LeafClan warriors and apprentices were collecting moss, and Oakpaw liked this place. She considered it reasonable that a cat named Oakpaw liked oaks, and one day she told Icepaw about it, but he responded with the most serious face that in such a case Mossfur only was supposed to gather moss.  
Oakpaw was coming close to the oaks when she heard a rustling sound and a scent of prey touched her nostrils. She froze. There it was – a small orange squirrel sitting among the roots and throwing around old leaves. Steadily, slowly the apprentice crawled towards it, remembering well that one wrong movement could cost someone a dinner. The little creature was carelessly continuing its search, it obviously hadn’t spent a lot of time on EagleClan side of the border. Unlike the other two Clans, LeafClan didn’t normally hunt squirrels, which made this challenge even more tempting for Oakpaw. “If I succeed now,” she silently wished, “something good will happen to me.” The Gathering was what she had in mind, but she did not dare to bet it on her hunting skills openly. Slowly, slowly, step after step she was moving closer. The squirrel stopped rustling and sniffed the air. Oakpaw stilled one more time, it took all her willpower not wave her tail. The squirrel returned to its business, and the hunter moved further. Soon a moment came that she had to stop and prepare for a final jump, and doubts overcame her. She wasn’t sure she guessed the distance correctly, what if she would land in the halfway or fly into the tree above the animal? Jumps were not her strong side, as well as not any other LeafClan cat's strong side, except, maybe, for Molewhisker, and now Oakpaw really wished she had Molewhisker's lanky frame and long legs. But doubts were pointless and led to nowhere, so she gathered her confidence, focused her eyes on the squirrel, and jumped at last.  
For a heartbeat she had almost ruined everything. She jumped short, of course, and only with her left forepaw she managed to pin the squirrel's tail to the ground. The animal squeaked and struggled to run up the tree, it was a lot stronger than anticipated, and Oakpaw, still unbalanced after the jump, felt that she was falling on one side. But she instinctively raised up another paw and grabbed the prey by its back, dragging it closer. One bite, and everything was over. Oakpaw was sitting below the oak, grinning happily, her heart pounding. Then she remembered another lesson Squirreltail taught her and cleared her throat.  
“StarClan, thank you for the life of this prey, uhh, given to feed my Clan,” she began in a clear but nervous voice. “I shall not take more than I need, and- and I shall give all that I can.”  
Now it was right. Oakpaw relished the sight of her prey a bit more and then covered it with leaves, intending to come for it later. Though food was a lot more important than the nest, moss was now her priority, since no squirrel was going to save her if Hawkface would be displeased. She clawed the oak trunk that seemed appropriate, carefully holding the moss so it wouldn’t fall on her head, and then rolled it into a transportable form. Hoping that it would be enough, she hurried back into the camp.  
“Where on earth were you?” Hawkface greeted her grumpily. “Have you talked to the whole of EagleClan?”  
“I’ve caught a squirrel!” Oakpaw explained as she dropped the moss. “Now can I go and bring it?”  
“No, you can’t!” the elder scoffed. “You’ll leave it there until it freezes. Bring it, mouse-brain! You should have done it already.”  
Without hesitation Oakpaw turned around and ran to the entrance one more time. Now she perfectly understood Blackpaw’s nervous elation of two moons ago. If someone had asked her what the Gathering was, she would have probably stared at this cat even with bigger disbelief. She reached the oaks, found the squirrel, and headed back, already tired of all those trips. For a moment she wondered how weird it was to tire oneself in order to get the right to spend half a night awake, but such thoughts faded away quickly. In her way she met Longpaw.  
“Tiny hunter, tiny catch,” he hissed through gritted teeth, regarding her squirrel.  
“Big hunter, no catch,” she responded boldly. Where did she get the courage from? It felt as if Icepaw was giggling inside of her head. Well done.  
Longpaw glanced at her grimly and without much surprise. He was standing so close to her that she could see red blood vessels in his eyes.  
“Look who's talking,” he said quietly. “Kittypet’s little friend grew up.”  
At first Oakpaw didn’t even understand what he was talking about, but then she got it and felt her anger rising.  
“Blackpaw is not a kittypet!” she growled. “Stop calling her names!”  
“Isn’t she?” Longpaw stepped even closer. “Then ask her who her father is.”  
Oakpaw felt shaken. She really had no idea about who might be Thunderstrike’s mate, and it was odd, considering that she knew everything about other cats.  
“No warrior liked that fat badger Thunderstrike, and she was hanging out with kittypets and rogues,” Longpaw went on, and Oakpaw, Thunderstrike’s niece, let out a hiss. “It looks like you've chosen a wrong friend, doesn’t it?”  
“What makes you think you are somehow better?” it was not a good thing to say, but Oakpaw couldn’t come up with anything else at the moment. She was shocked by what he said, and the fact that it might be true made it only worse.  
“My sister and I are Clanborn,” Longpaw smirked. “And we will never break the Code the way your kin did.”  
There was something wrong about it, something so deeply wrong that Oakpaw had no answer to it. She knew it as clear as day that Thunderstrike wasn’t a traitor, and Blackpaw wasn’t even responsible for her mother's deeds, long time ago nobody was Clanborn, Leafstar, Eaglestar, and Woodstar weren’t Clanborn, it is not blood that defines a warrior, it is the spirit…  
“So,” Longpaw finished, “I really am better than them.”  
“Longpaw!” they have heard Rainstripe’s voice. His mentor was coming towards them through the bushes. “What are you doing here?” He looked at them and understood it all. “Follow me,” he ordered grimly, and Longpaw did so, without even a glance at Oakpaw.  
She watched them going away and disappearing between the bushes. It was unfair, it was so unfair that she began sobbing. If only she had more time to explain it all, he would have understood, he was bound to understand like she understood it when Mudstorm was explaining. What would Mudstorm do? Certainly she wouldn’t just sit there and cry, she would have known what to say to make him listen. Even Icepaw would have found a way to wipe that confident smirk off Longpaw's lips.  
“But he is not so confident,” a sudden thought crossed her mind. “He’s faking it. ‘Ask her who's her father, ask her who’s her father’, when was the last time he talked to his own father? Windstep is sharing tongues with Thunderstrike, and the little piece of crow food got mad. You look strong, and he's afraid of you, that's why he wants to hurt you. Don’t let them make you believe you are weak, or they will rule your life like they rule the life of Mudstorm and Whitecloud.”  
Oakpaw’s eyes widened. “This is not me,” she thought. “I’m not like this, those aren’t my thoughts!” She was scared, and then she remembered that they warned her about a cat that could sneak into her head.  
“Is that you, my ancestor?” she cried out into the nowhere. There was no answer, and no strange thoughts came to her mind. “They are my Clanmates,” she shouted nevertheless. “I love them all, even Longpaw!”  
With those words she picked up her prey and padded towards the camp. Whether it was her first interaction with her ancestor or not, it still cleared her mind: Longpaw was not her enemy. But the cat in her head was, and so were the cats at the Gathering she wanted to see tonight.  
She returned to the camp and saw Blackpaw sniffing the fresh-kill pile.  
“Hey,” Oakpaw called her friend as she was walking towards her, carrying her prey. “I’ve caught this for you.” When she had spoken it, she realized that it might be true, some part of her wanted to impress Blackpaw with a squirrel.  
“Wow!” Blackpaw’s eyes lit up. “Really? Thank you!”  
Oakpaw watched the black apprentice, her merry green eyes, a sincere smile on her face, and she couldn’t help admiring how whole and complete the young she-cat was. They have eaten together and discussed their chances to attend the Gathering, and Oakpaw didn’t ask her anything.

Shinekit was in the medicine cat’s den, listening to Ashpaw. It became a habit of her to come here, and she liked calm and collected Whitecloud, as well as her apprentice, less dignified but truly dedicated to her duties.  
“Catmint is not for greencough alone, it helps against whitecough and can even be used to treat tiredness and tension, but due to the fact that it is very rare, we don't use it in such cases,” Ashpaw was continuing the speech she started quite a long while ago. “It is growing only near two-legs' dens, this is why it is so difficult to collect. But we need big supplies each leaf-bare, so the risk is necessary.”  
Shinekit nodded.  
“I am going to take a look at it tomorrow,” Ashpaw went on.  
There was a rustle from the entrance, and a shadow fell on the ground. Longpaw, Ashpaw's brother, shoved his head inside and called:  
“Are you alone?”  
He looked around, probably to spot Whitecloud, and paid no heed to Shinekit in the corner.  
“Rainstripe is angry with me. If I won't be able to go to the Gathering, please tell Dapplepaw that I want to meet her at the Nest of Rocks tomorrow noon.”  
“I don’t think you should see her,” Ashpaw replied with a slight taste of displeasure in her voice.  
“She asked me to do something, but I didn’t,” Longpaw sounder a bit annoyed. “I missed the previous Gathering, and I thought I would see her tonight, I owe her an explanation.”  
“Just don't act like those silly cats from the stories,” Ashpaw warned him. “You know, those who gave promises that hurt them later.”  
“Do I look like a cat who can do something stupid because of a she-cat?” Longpaw winced. “Just do it and leave the rest up to me.”  
“I will,” Ashpaw sighed. Longpaw retreated, and she returned to her herbs, deep in thought now. Shinekit watched her for a while and then said:  
“You don't have to do everything he asks, you know.”  
The gray apprentice twitched.  
“Oh, you're still here!” she exclaimed nervously. “I have forgotten about you.”  
“Don’t bother, I am already leaving,” Shinekit said.

Littlestar had just called the cats for a Clan meeting, and they were gathering together under the Watching Tree. Oakpaw and Blackpaw hurried to take their places with other apprentices and immediately gazed at the leader.  
“I learnt how to attack from under a bush,” Icepaw whispered.  
“I have caught a squirrel,” Oakpaw responded.  
They listened to Littlestar repeating the news she will share with the Gathering, and their anxiety was growing with each word she said. “What if we didn’t show enough progress?” Oakpaw worried in her mind. “What if we're still too young?” When thinking reasonably, she knew it made no sense, now they were about half a moon older then Blackpaw was on her first Gathering, and they worked hard to gain their right to be there when Littlestar would announce their names as new LeafClan apprentices. But since when reason rules feelings?  
“… Mudstorm, Thunderstrike, Squirreltail, Molewhisker…” Littlestar was naming the warriors that would attend the Gathering.  
“Look, she named our mentors!” Icepaw poked his sister.  
“As well as Blackpaw, Oakpaw, and Icepaw,” Littlestar finished.  
The first Oakpaw’s thought was that she was indeed going to the Gathering. The second was that Longpaw wasn’t going, and that's a big why. And only then the realization came that she was sitting in the clearing under merry looks of her whole Clan, while Blackpaw and Icepaw were pawing her from both sides and cheering loudly. She let out a surprised meow and nipped Icepaw as the understanding that it all was happening to her for real overwhelmed her.  
Littlestar left the Watching Tree, and all cats suddenly turned very busy. Nightfrost was making last arrangements before leaving the camp on Rainstripe, Windstep was quickly and expressively talking to Mossfur, who did not seem much entertained, Brightfur by the nursery was arguing with Swiftkit about something, Ashpaw was looking for Longpaw and calling him loudly, but he had already disappeared somewhere. Mudstorm came up to her kits and regarded them sternly.  
“This will be your first Gathering, and there's something you must bear in mind,” she said. “Firstly, don't disturb warriors. You should talk to them only when they ask you something. Secondly, don't give away anything related to our Clan life. Not what you've caught today, not who is standing guard, not what you have learnt during trainings. If somebody is asking you about it, answer ‘I don't know,’ or ‘I forgot'. In any matter, the less you talk the better.”  
“Leave them be, Mudstorm,” Nightfrost called. “Nobody stays silent at the first Gathering.”  
“But if you want to get some secrets out of other apprentices, feel free to ask them anything,” Mudstorm finished. “Show them your interest, make them feel important, and they will start talking just to impress you.”  
Oakpaw was overwhelmed by it all, she couldn’t help trembling as she thought that she was moments from seeing all those cats she had only heard about, and Mudstorm’s words left a big impression. The Gathering now sounded like a spy mission of a kind, and she understood it perfectly.  
“OK, Mudstorm,” she said in a shaking voice. “We’ll let them boast about their achievements.”  
“Very well,” Mudstorm smiled and left to talk to Ashpaw, who was still wandering the clearing and calling for her brother.  
“What?” Icepaw gave Oakpaw a suspicious look. “I though the Gathering is about showing which Clan is the best.”  
Oakpaw didn’t answer to him, she found Blackpaw and looked at her worriedly.  
“Will you tell me who is who?” she asked. “I don’t want to look funny.”  
“Of course!” Blackpaw responded. “Don’t bother, it'll be fine, especially without Longpaw. I wonder, what did he do that Rainstripe is so mad?”  
Soon the cats left the camp at last. It was dark, and everything looked unfamiliar as Oakpaw strolled through the bushes alongside with her Clanmates. The moon lit up their backs, and their pelts turned black or shined silver in the bright but cold light. It was frosty, and Oakpaw was shivering, for her fur wasn’t thick enough yet to comfort her in the beginning of the leaf-bare. And both the cold and the light only added to the feeling of unreality that overcame her again. It was so hard to believe that she was finally going to the Gathering, where she would finally talk to the cats she smelled on the borders, see Starstar and Smokestar. On and on they were going, and the ground started curling upwards as they came close to the Nest of Rocks. Warriors began sniffing the air, and a murmur went through their rows. “Everybody is already there,” said Squirreltail, and Oakpaw’s heart skipped a beat. Then Littlestar had frozen.  
“Ready?” Blackpaw whispered, and Oakpaw nodded. “Here we go.”  
Littlestar gave a sign, and the LeafClan cats marched forward like one, proudly entering the clearing. A lot of cats turned their heads to look at them. This is how Oakpaw saw the other two Clans for the first time.  
They all were so different. Some were big and heavy-built, with broad shoulders and robust faces, these smelled of WoodClan, the others slim and tall, with lanky bodies and long strong legs, and those carried the scent Oakpaw knew due to regular visits to EagleClan border. Eyes, green and amber, lemon and blue, narrow and round, big and small, dozens of eyes were fixed on the newcomers. The tabby’s paws turned weak, she stumbled, but, fortunately, nobody noticed it.  
“Let’s go!” Blackpaw called the siblings. “I’ll show you everybody.”  
LeafClan warriors joined the others in between the stone rows, and the conversations began. It was hard to imagine that in other circumstances all the cats gathered here might have been fighting and killing, one needed to look further in order to notice the tension and the borders that crossed not only the lands, but the minds and the hearts of the warriors. Blackpaw promptly lead the younger apprentices forward until they ended up in the middle of the clearing.  
“Look,” she pointed at the leaders, who were currently taking places atop the cliff that loomed above. “See the gray one on the right from Littlestar? This is Smokestar. And the other one,” she made a deliberate pause to emphasize the effect, “is Starstar.”  
“That Smokestar looks pretty scary,” Icepaw decided. “Hey, Oakpaw, what do you think?”  
But Oakpaw wasn't listening.  
She was looking at Starstar.


	9. Chapter 8

He was stunning. Slender and light, like the most of his Clan, with graceful long legs and a sharp muzzle, which was so different from round and flat faces of LeafClan cats, he was sitting high above, as if he belonged to that place. His pelt was impeccable white, it seemed thick and smooth, slightly longer fur formed a mane on his neck and shoulders. His blue and yellow eyes she was told about glowed mysteriously, like a pieces of deep sky and bright sun in those night realms, and his fur shined with the light of the moon. It was impossible to look at anyone when he was here.  
“He is awesome!” Oakpaw gasped.  
“Who, Smokestar?” Icepaw shook his head in bewilderment. “You did go crazy, sister.”  
“What Smokestar?” Oakpaw leered at him angrily. “I am talking about Starstar! He is amazing!”  
“What, better than our Littlestar?”  
“That’s different, stupid furball! He's a tom!”  
“So you did fall in love with him, eh?” Blackpaw interrupted the younger apprentices. “I told you.”  
“Oh,” Oakpaw was caught off guard. “Dunno, maybe, a little bit… I mean…”  
“Greetings, LeafClan,” they have heard a low voice. “Who have you brought?”  
They saw a big, heavy she-cat that smelled of WoodClan. She had the most unusual fur Oakpaw had ever seen: thick black stripes on silver gray. The stripes created patterns on her cheeks and forehead, shapes that are common among tabbies, but while, for example, on Rainstripe’s face they looked like gentle shadows, here those were like feathers of a raven.  
“Hello, Dapplepaw,” Blackpaw cheerfully responded. “These are Oakpaw and Icepaw, and she is already in love with Starstar!”  
“Er, I didn’t say that…” Oakpaw weakly protested. But she couldn’t help glancing at the EagleClan leader again.  
“Good,” Dapplepaw solemnly nodded. “She’ll be right after Redpaw. With Sandpaw it makes us seven.”  
“What!?” Oakpaw stared at Redpaw and Sandpaw, another two WoodClan apprentices, who slowly came up to them. Sandpaw smiled. She was about six moons, while Redpaw was clearly older, maybe even older than Blackpaw and Dapplepaw.  
“Seven?” Blackpaw frowned. “Not eight?”  
“Breezetail,” Dapplepaw said with disgust, emphasizing the ending of the name, “said she was too big for such… games.”  
“Traitor,” Blackpaw growled.  
“Agreed,” Dapplepaw titled her head.  
“Wait,” Oakpaw called. “What is going on?”  
Dapplepaw turned to her, light green eyes reflected the shine of the moon.  
“We are the cats in love with Starstar. Falconpaw and Frostpaw from EagleClan, myself, Blackpaw, Sandpaw, Redpaw, and you.”  
“Mouse dung,” Oakpaw thought. Or maybe she said it aloud.

Meanwhile Icepaw wandered off. He didn’t like the look Dapplepaw gave him, as if he was something totally unimportant, and he saw that Blackpaw was friends with this cat. He walked alone between chatting warriors, looking in all directions and trying to find somebody to talk to. This is how he bumped into two identical gray toms, who smelled of EagleClan.  
“Hello,” said one of them.  
“Hello,” Icepaw replied.  
“We are Stormpaw…” the left one began.  
“… and Stonepaw,” the right one finished.  
“I am Icepaw,” he said.  
“We know.”  
“We saw your sister hunting a squirrel.”  
“Our kits do better.”  
“But for a LeafClan cat it was very good.”  
Icepaw startled. They offended his Clan, it was obvious, but what could he do? His mind was overrunning the possibilities, looking for a solution, right words to put an end to it.  
“Do you mean that she did it better than you?” he said.   
The left one (Stonepaw?) was displeased, but his brother laughed. It seemed that they still were quite different, despite the habit of finishing sentences for one another, and Icepaw was satisfied with the discovery.  
“So, that’s your first Gathering too?” he asked, and the brothers nodded.  
“But we already know everybody here,” Stormpaw boasted. “See that gray one over there? That’s- “  
“Proudhawk of WoodClan,” Icepaw finished. “He’s a grandson of their leader.”  
“Oh, you know,” Stormpaw sounded a bit disappointed.  
They watched Proudhawk for a moment, he was talking to some EagleClan she-cat. Blue eyes glittered in the dark as he turned and looked somewhere above Icepaw’s head. The apprentice grew curious and shot a glance in that direction. There, close to the cliff, his father chatted friendly with a skinny EagleClan elder. Icepaw turned around and looked at the WoodClan warrior again. There were no feeling in cold eyes of Proudhawk, only strange determination and question. Icepaw shivered.  
“And who's my dad talking to?” he decided to change the topic and pointed towards the elder.  
“That’s One-ear,” Stonepaw explained. “He used to be one of our greatest warriors, and he took two lives of Smokestar!”  
“Wow,” Icepaw looked at the tom with respect. He wanted to say something else, but a loud howl came from the cliff, indicating that the Gathering had began. Icepaw looked around hastily, unaware of where he was supposed to be, since it looked like he was in the middle of EagleClan cats, and Stonepaw offered:  
“Here, you can sit with us. Our Clans are friends.”  
“What is more interesting is what your sister is doing among WoodClan warriors,” Stormpaw added.

Oakpaw had no idea. Blackpaw said: “Let’s go,” and then she met someone else and disappeared, leaving Oakpaw alone with Dapplepaw, who beckoned her and lead somewhere. When the LeafClan apprentice found herself surrounded by enemy warriors only, it was too late to look for another place, and so she sat down, curling her tail around her paws neatly. She couldn’t help wondering whether it was Dapplepaw’s plan all along to bring her here, where she would feel that the big tabby is the only person she more or less knew, and to make her dependant and eager to speak. She decided to be very mindful of what she would say.  
“And where is the crème coloured one, the grumpy tom?” Dapplepaw whispered when they rested on the ground, preparing to listen to the leaders.  
“Longpaw? He stayed in the camp.”  
“Why?”  
“I forgot.”  
They all raised their eyes and looked at the cliff as the Gathering began. Smokestar was the first one to speak. He stepped forward, smaller than a lot of his Clanmates, but emerging strange power and danger, he looked around, glancing at each cat, and Oakpaw finally tore her eyes off Starstar. WoodClan leader’s fog gray fur was long, and yellow eyes blazed.  
“Leaf-bare is late, and my Clan is more prosperous than ever,” he began in a deep, harsh voice that somehow resembled old wood. “The prey is running, and our fresh-kill pile is always big due to efforts of our hunters. Tonight I would like to introduce you two young warriors: Wishblaze and Sparrowclaw.”  
With the rest of the cats Oakpaw turned around, looking for the two. She found them rather close to the place she had taken, they were sitting together about two fox lengths away. Two toms with light thick fur, they lifted their chins proudly, eyes shining.  
“My half-brothers,” Sandpaw whispered.  
“And Pineshade,” Smokestar went on, “has brought here her first apprentice: Sandpaw.”  
Now all eyes turned to Oakpaw’s neighbor. She stared at the leaders, trembling with excitement, her fur rose under dozens of looks. A tall tabby warrior shifted closer to Sandpaw, her face proud. Oakpaw’s heart was pounding: she was about to be introduced the same way.  
“And that's all I have to say this time,” Smokestar finished and stepped aside, nodding politely to Littlestar. The lithe she-cat smiled.  
“As my old rival pointed out,” she began, and a wave of chuckles ran through the rows of cats, “the weather has been friendly to us. Our prey is not only running, but also making nests and singing.” She made a pause and looked at Oakpaw directly. “Tonight we have newcomers here: Icepaw the apprentice of Thunderstrike and Oakpaw the apprentice of Squirreltail.”  
And finally it happened. Oakpaw felt it when cats started turning towards her, watchful eyes measuring her and searching her. It was more attention than she ever had, probably more than she was ready for, pleasant but at the same time unnerving, since she had no idea how she looked and what all those warriors thought of her. But then something happened, something that made her forget everything else: she unconsciously raised her eyes and crossed glances with Starstar.  
He was looking at her.  
He was looking at her with a warm expression and wistful smile.  
She felt she was lost in those eyes of his, the left one yellow, the right one blue. He looked at her as if he knew it, and a smile on his face was a secret message to her. This moment lasted for brief heartbeats, but for her it was like eternity.  
Then Starstar drew his eyes off her, and she found herself sitting on the ground, her sight was blurry and everything seemed darker, sparkles floating in front of her eyes.  
“He looked at me!” she breathed out.   
“No, he looked at me first!” Sandpaw snapped jealously.  
“He looked at all of us”, Dapplepaw said solemnly. “That is why he belongs to us alone, and no one else.”  
“Right”, Blackpaw suddenly shoved her head between Oakpaw and the WoodClan tabby. It turned out to be that she was sitting behind them for a while.  
“Hush,” Dapplepaw tossed her head. “He’ll speak now.”  
They stopped talking.  
Starstar got up and stepped forward. His white fur glowed in the moonlight, muscles rolled under the pelt.  
“Hello,” he smiled. “This Gathering has been rather boring, what do you think? Time for me and my offer.”  
Cats were looking at him in silence. Oakpaw couldn’t help noticing how WoodClan warriors suddenly grew tense, their expectation filled the clearing like cold water. Eyes were fixed at the EagleClan leader, and those eyes were full of… alarm?  
“You all know the forest on our boundary with LeafClan,” Starstar went on as if nothing happened. “I suggest we make it common with LeafClan and use it together during the season of leaf-bare.”

“What?” Icepaw gasped.  
“Just think about it!” the brothers simultaneously began. They exchanged glances and Stormpaw winced. “Just think about it,” he went on alone. “No more cases when the prey crosses the border, no more fights, we can hunt together and share the fresh kill…”  
“That’s against the Code,” Icepaw frowned.

The same words at the same time were repeated in another part of the clearing with much more ferocity.  
“That’s against the Code!” Pineshade yelled. “Code teaches us to guard our borders, not to open them!”  
All WoodClan warriors seemed to agree with her. Oakpaw saw faces twisted with anger, heard voices full of rage. They were all around her, and she wanted to become small and invisible. She looked for Blackpaw, but the young she-cat wasn’t here again. At the left Sandpaw was hissing and spiting alongside with her mentor, at the right Dapplepaw wistfully squinted at the leaders, scheming made her look menacing like a villain in the stories the elders tell to the kits.  
The Gathering slowly calmed down. Starstar was waiting, a look of noble disdain on his face.  
“Is that all?” he said. “Good. Tell me, does the Nest of Rocks violate the Code? It is a common land for all three Clans to use.”   
“The Nest of Rocks is a place given to us by StarClan”, said a heavy-built tabby who sat below the cliff beside Whitecloud. Oakpaw guessed he was the WoodClan medicine cat.  
“If you think StarClan might dislike my proposal, Frogspots, why did not they cloud the Moon?” Starstar answered, and Oakpaw raised her head: the sky was clear, and the Moon shined bright.  
“We still haven’t heard Littlestar,” Frogspots went on, and his low deep voice reminded Oakpaw of Dapplepaw. She noticed that even their fur patterns looked somewhat alike.  
“Is he your relative?” she whispered.  
“Yes.”  
“Of course, the final decision is up to my friend,” Starstar nodded and looked at the LeafClan leader.  
“Well, what do I say?” Littlestar had first opened her mouth since she introduced Oakpaw and Icepaw. She looked as calm and peaceful as if she was simply deciding whether to eat a mouse or a mole. Yet she paused before her answer and looked around, meeting the eyes of her Clanmates. “Yes.”  
“I'll agree to it only when you share the Small Birches with us,” Smokestar grumbled.  
“I will, if you give us an equal part of your territory,” Littlestar promised with a small chuckle. Nightfrost and some LeafClan warriors laughed.  
“Still it is against the Code,” Smokestar drawled. The whole of his Clan were quiet now, but their displeasure was obvious.  
“The Moon lights us up,” Littlestar smiled. She turned to the Gathering again. “Has somebody else something to say? OK. This Gathering is over.”

“Good-bye!” Stonepaw poked Icepaw. “See you soon!”  
“Wanna bet I'll catch more squirrels than you both?”

“Why did he make such offer to you?” Redpaw looked at Oakpaw with jealous eyes. “He was supposed to choose us!”  
“Um…”

LeafClan were on their way back to the camp. The warriors were chattering, discussing the news, somewhere behind Antfall several times asked loudly why Starstar had made this offer right on the Gathering instead of coming to see Littlestar a few days earlier. Oakpaw’s head reeled. What happened? Did they break the Code? Was she in love with Starstar? She did not have enough knowledge to answer the first question and could only try to consider the last. The EagleClan leader was very attractive, but she did not feel as if she couldn’t live without him, as if it was a love at the first sight. Yet it would have been fun to be in love like a grown up. And at the same time to love a cat from another Clan was surely against the Code… She shook her head. It was just too much of new impressions.


End file.
